Once a darling of the biotech space, Intercept Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ICPT) has seen investors flee from the shares in droves, pushing it down close to 50% from my last article on the company and leading to a significant underperformance to its primary NASH-driven comparable Genfit (GNFT.PA) (OTCPK:GNFTF), which has fallen almost 20% over the same time period.
Investors have had a lot to mull over since the
beginning of summer. Both Intercept and Genfit have produced mixed
clinical trial results that have required further explanations from
management, and both are subject to the questions and risks over pricing
for drugs that could be given to millions of patients. More specific to
Intercept, there are valid concerns now about safety, efficacy,
competition, and market potential for its lead drug, and investors
aren't happy about the uncertainty.
I still believe that Intercept's lead drug OCA is active
and safe in primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and likely to demonstrate
approval safety and efficacy in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). I
also believe, though, that there are meaningful questions about true
market potential and that Genfit could be a more significant competitor
(albeit not necessarily on an apples-to-apples basis).
Read the full article:
Intercept Pharmaceuticals Weighed Down By A Troubling Trifecta
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