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Glaxo (GSK), Vir COVID Drug Appears Effective Against Omicron

GlaxoSmithKline GSK and Vir Biotechnology VIR announced pre-clinical data, which demonstrated that their COVID-19 therapy, sotrovimab, maintains activity against key mutations in the spike protein of the new variant of concern, Omicron. The antibody candidate has shown activity against several deadly mutants of coronavirus including Delta, Delta plus and Mu in clinical studies. Amid rising concerns of an Omicron outbreak, the encouraging pre-clinical data against the variant supports its strong potential as an enduring COVID-19 treatment option going forward.

Pre-clinical data included results of testing of sotrovimab against pseudo-viruses with each containing a specific individual mutation found in the Omicron variant. Glaxo and Vir Biotechnology are currently conducting an in-vitro test of their antibody drug against all mutations found in the Omicron variant in a single pseudo-virus. Data from this test will demonstrate the neutralizing ability of sotrovimab against a combination of the Omicron mutations. An update on the data from this in-vitro study is expected by the end of 2021.

The companies stated that sotrovimab targets a specific portion of the coronavirus, which makes it more difficult for the variants to develop resistance against the candidate.

We note that Glaxo and Vir Biotechnology’s sotrovimab, as an intravenous administration, was granted emergency use authorization (“EUA”) for treating mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in adult and pediatric patients in May. The intravenous drug is available under the tradename of Xevudy.

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The approval was based on data from a late-stage study that demonstrated that treatment with sotrovimab achieved 79% reduction in risk of hospitalization or death.

Glaxo’s shares have gained 12.7% so far this year compared with the industry’s 12.6% increase.

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In a separate press release, the companies announced that sotrovimab was granted conditional marketing authorization in the United Kingdom for the treatment of symptomatic adults and adolescents. The drug is authorized for use in patients with acute COVID-19 infection without any requirement of oxygen supplementation with increased risk of progressing to severe infection. The drug needs to be administered within five days of the onset of COVID-19 infection symptoms.

Glaxo and Vir Biotechnology already have a supply agreement in place with the government of the United Kingdom for the supply of sotrovimab. The investigational therapy is also authorized for temporary/conditional use in several other countries including Japan and Canada. It is also under review in Europe.

Glaxo and Vir Biotechnology have agreements with several entities across the globe in place for supply of more than 750,000 doses of sotrovimab. The companies also have an agreement with the European Commission for additional doses.

A report released by another COVID-19 drugmaker, Regeneron REGN earlier this week stated that vaccine-induced and monoclonal antibody-conveyed neutralization activity will reduce against the Omicron variant, implying lower effectiveness of available COVID-19 solutions against the new variant of concern, including Regeneron’s antibody cocktail, REGEN-COV. Further tests are being conducted to understand the impact using the actual Omicron variant sequence.

Regeneron’s REGEN-COV comprises two monoclonal antibodies, casirivimab and imdevimab., which have demonstrated strong effectiveness against previous coronavirus strains.

Regeneron added $3.5 billion to its top line from sales of REGEN-COV, leading to more than 100% increase in total revenues in the first nine months of 2021.

GlaxoSmithKline plc Price

GlaxoSmithKline plc Price
GlaxoSmithKline plc Price

GlaxoSmithKline plc price | GlaxoSmithKline plc Quote

Zacks Ranks & Stock to Consider

Glaxo currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Sarepta Therapeutics SRPT is another top-ranked stock from the pharma/biotech sector, carrying a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Estimates for Sarepta have narrowed from a loss per share of $6.95 to $4.99 for 2021 and from $4.83 to $3.61 for 2022.

Sarepta delivered an earnings surprise of 11.06%, on average, in the last four quarters.


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Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (VIR) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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