The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved AbbVie’s (ABBV) Qulipta for the preventive treatment of episodic migraine in adults. The company said that Qulipta was the first and only oral calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) receptor antagonist (gepant).
AbbVie is a biopharmaceutical company, which focuses on therapeutic areas like immunology, oncology, neuroscience, eye care, virology, women’s health and gastroenterology.
FDA’s approval is based on a clinical program performed on 2,000 patients who experienced 4 to 14 migraine days per month, a Phase 3 ADVANCE study (the pivotal Phase 2b/3 study), and a Phase 3 long-term safety study.
The ADVANCE trial revealed that most of the patients witnessed about 50% to 100% reduction in monthly migraine days over the 12-week treatment period. Some of the reactions noted during the trial include nausea, constipation, fatigue/somnolence and decreased appetite. (See AbbVie stock chart on TipRanks)
The Vice-Chairman and President of AbbVie, Michael Severino, M.D., said, “We are proud that AbbVie is now the only pharmaceutical company to offer three products across the full spectrum of migraine treatment, which include preventive therapies for chronic and episodic migraine and an acute treatment for migraine attacks.”
Following the announcement, Mizuho Securities analyst Vamil Divan maintained a Buy rating on AbbVie with a price target of $131 (22% upside potential).
Divan noted, “With Qulipta’s approval, AbbVie now has an oral option that will compete directly with Biohaven’s Nurtec ODT as well as with the injectable CGRP antibodies in the migraine prevention market. We expect AbbVie to leverage its size and scale, along with its broad portfolio of migraine products, to gain share in this large market.”
Overall, the stock has a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 10 Buys and 2 Holds. The average AbbVie price target of $128 implies 19.3% upside potential. Shares of the company have gained 18.8% over the past year.
TipRanks data shows that financial blogger opinions are 100% Bullish on PPL, compared to the sector average of 71%.
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