Shire Pharmaceuticals rallied sharply this morning after it received approval for Intuniv, an ADHD treatment.
“The approval of INTUNIV marks a significant advance in the treatment of ADHD in children and adolescents in Europe. Previously, physicians had only one licensed non-stimulant option for these patients,” said Perry Sternberg, Shire.
Shire Pharmaceutical’s share price has been on a rollercoaster ride in the last year as investors contend with takeover talks and the results of clinical trials.
“Traders obviously hope new indication for Intuniv can help replace some of the lostsales since the drug went off-patent and began suffering generic competition,” Mike van Dulken, head of research at Accendo Markets, said to a Reuters reported.
“Continued progress by Shire in ADHD keeps it ahead of game to develop the next preferred treatment, to help it recapture lost market share to what is inevitable generic competition over time,” he added.
Shire specialises in rare diseases and this focus has been of particular interest to overseas companies such as AbbVie who only called off takeover talks after US tax rules changed, making the deal unattractive.
Shire have hit headlines for attempts to buy Baxalta in a $30 billion deal and has also been rumoured to be eyeing up other potential tie ups.
