Amgen shares slide after Novartis Lp(a) trial misses cardiovascular endpoint
The result lowered investor confidence in Amgen’s similarly targeted olpasiran, although it does not determine the outcome of that programme.
Amgen shares fell about 5% after Novartis said its pelacarsen therapy substantially reduced lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), but failed to reduce major cardiovascular events in the Phase 3 Lp(a)HORIZON trial.
According to a Yahoo Finance report, Amgen’s market value fell by roughly US$12 billion after hours, with the shares at about US$415. The market reaction reflected concern about olpasiran, Amgen’s separate therapy based on a related biological approach.
Pelacarsen missed the trial’s composite cardiovascular-outcomes endpoint, which included cardiovascular death, heart attack, stroke and urgent revascularisation. The result challenges the assumption that lowering Lp(a) alone will necessarily reduce cardiovascular events.
Olpasiran reduced Lp(a) by more than 95% at certain doses in Phase 2, compared with roughly 80% for pelacarsen in earlier studies. Whether that deeper reduction can produce better outcomes remains unproven, and the Novartis result does not establish that olpasiran will fail.
Amgen is diversified beyond olpasiran, with MariTide, Repatha and Tezspire among its other significant assets. Eli Lilly is also testing lepodisiran to determine whether Lp(a) reduction can improve cardiovascular outcomes.
