The shares of Shire (LSE: SHP) dropped 1% to 2,680p this morning after the niche pharmaceuticals specialist revealed mixed clinical results for its Lifitegrast treatment for dry eye disease.
Shire, which has enjoyed a 42% rally in its share price this year, noted the “statistically significant improvement in the prespecified symptoms of dry eye disease” among patients.
However, the treatment missed its second target, which measured improvements in corneal staining.
Commenting on the results, chief executive Flemming Ornskov summarised:
“We will be examining the totality of the data for Lifitegrast in OPUS-2, as well as OPUS-1 and across the entire clinical trial program. We look forward to discussing the Lifitegrast program with regulatory authorities.”
Shire is Britain’s third-largest pharmaceuticals company, and is best known for the attention deficit disorder treatments Adderall and Vyvanse.
With a market cap of £15bn, Shire is valued at 18 times its expected earnings, and offers a prospective dividend yield of 0.6%.
Of course, whether that valuation, today’s results and the prospects for the pharmaceuticals industry combine to make Shire a ‘buy’, is something only you can decide.
