Healthcare giant Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) paused a gene therapy trial for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) following the sudden death of a young patient. Meanwhile, the company is betting big on cancer treatments to drive growth.
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Pfizer’s Setback in DMD
The child passed away from cardiac arrest after receiving the one-time therapy, called fordadistrogene movaparvovec, early last year. The Phase 2 trial involved children aged two to four. Now, Pfizer has paused the Phase 3 study (involving children aged four to eight) of the gene therapy while it investigates the incident. DMD is a rare and fatal muscle disease that primarily affects boys.
PFE Bets Big on Oncology
Meanwhile, Pfizer is betting big on the development of cancer treatments in the coming periods to drive growth. Albert Bourla, the company’s CEO, dubbed oncology as Pfizer’s new COVID-19. The CEO’s comments come amid dwindling sales of Pfizer’s COVID-19 treatments such as Paxlovid and Comirnaty.
In fact, Pfizer’s $43 billion acquisition of Seagen last year was part of its oncology push. The acquisition doubled Pfizer’s oncology pipeline to 60 programs. The company aims to deliver at least eight blockbuster cancer treatments by 2030. Moreover, Pfizer’s recent better-than-expected Q1 results were largely driven by the performance of its non-COVID-19 offerings such as Vyndaqul products, Abrysvo, Eliquis, Padcev, Adcetris, and the Prevnar product line. Adcetris and Padcev come from its Seagen acquisition.”
What Is the Target Price for PFE Stock?
For now, though, the dwindling fortunes of its COVID-19 products continue to weigh on Pfizer’s share price, which is down by nearly 25% over the past year. Overall, the Street has a Moderate Buy consensus rating on the stock, alongside an average PFE price target of $31.70.
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