Regeneron Pharmaceuticals has signed an agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Defense for the additional supply of 1.25 million doses of its antibody cocktail for the use in non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Shares were up 2.6% in Wednesday’s pre-market trading.
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Under the new agreement, the US government will purchase all finished doses (up to 1.25 million) of Regeneron’s (REGN) casirivimab and imdevimab antibody cocktail by June 30, 2021, for a value of up to $2.625 billion. The US government had earlier signed an agreement for 300,000 doses.
The company’s casirivimab and imdevimab antibody combination received the FDA’s Emergency Use Authorization in November 2020 for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 in adults, as well as in pediatric patients at least 12 years of age.
Regeneron disclosed that its antibody cocktail continues to be evaluated in clinical trials for the treatment of COVID-19 in certain hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients. (See REGN stock analysis on TipRanks)
George D. Yancopoulos, President and Chief Scientific Officer of Regeneron, stated, “Patients in our antibody cocktail outpatient clinical trial experienced significant reductions in virus levels and required fewer medical visits for COVID-19, suggesting the therapy can help reduce the current burden on hospitals and healthcare systems.”
“Additionally, as expected, the virus continues to mutate, with the possibility of developing resistance to any one antibody. The Regeneron cocktail of two antibodies, each targeting a different site on the virus, reduces the possibility of the virus becoming resistant,” added Yancopoulos.
REGN shares have already surged about 33% over the past year and the average price target of $670.36 indicates further upside potential of 32.6% in the 12 months ahead.
Last week, Citigroup analyst Mohit Bansal upgraded Regeneron to Buy from Hold but lowered the price target to $575 from $635. Bansal feels that the Street is overlooking the pace of Dupixent’s (eczema therapy) growth and expansion potential while fixating on Eylea, “which is gradually becoming smaller part of the story.”
The analyst predicts 8% annual revenue growth and 11% earnings growth through 2025 for Regeneron. He believes that the fundamental story is “strong.”
As per the TipRanks Smart Score system, Regeneron scores a perfect 10, which indicates a high likelihood of outperformance.
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