Amgen's Kyprolis Fails To Met Endpoint, But It's Not All Bad News

Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) announced that the Phase 3 CLARION trial for Kyprolis in first-line multiple myeloma (MM) did not meet the primary endpoint.

Goldman Sachs’ Terence Flynn maintains a Buy rating on the company, while lowering the price target from $206 to $198.

Disappointing Data

“On the call AMGN offered minimal additional details beyond the release as it wants to present the data at ASH in December,” Flynn mentioned.

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However, three MM physicians gave their perspectives on the trial, as well as implications for Kyprolis in MM.

Although the drug candidate was expected to still find use in first line MM in the United States, additional details are still awaited.

Following the announcement of the disappointing top-line data, Flynn stated that “physicians on the call highlighted trial design limitations as well as the fact that the MP backbone employed in the trial is rarely used anymore.”

Physicians Favorable On Kyprolis

The physicians also stated that the data would not affect their current use of Kyprolis, and the analyst believes physicians generally held a favorable view of the drug.

Amgen is in the process of conducting another front line Phase 3 trial in combination with Revlimid, which Flynn believes could provide additional data that supports the Kyprolis profile.

The analyst believes that “AMGN has a number of additional important pipeline drivers beyond Kyprolis including Repatha and Erenumab where we expect additional data in 2H16-1Q17.”

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