AstraZeneca has put numbers on the cost programme it flagged with its third quarter results. The plan, called Reshaping for Sustainable Growth, targets 1.5 billion dollars in annual savings to be reinvested largely in research, carries a one time restructuring charge of about 2 billion dollars, and is not expected to shrink the workforce on a net basis, according to finance chief Aradhana Sarin. The company reiterated that it is on track for its 80 billion dollar revenue target for 2030, and the shares rose 7 percent on Friday. The new detail is the size of the savings and the charge; the results themselves were covered in this beat last week.
Alnylam’s third quarter detail explains its share slide. Amvuttra revenue of 1.13 billion dollars was in line with expectations, but management disclosures pointed to a proposed rule change that would cut Medicare reimbursement for drugs bought through the 340B discount programme and a more restrictive UnitedHealth policy on first line Amvuttra use. Analysts quoted by BioPharma Dive now expect the drug’s 2026 revenue toward the low end of guidance, and the shares fell more than 20 percent as the results were digested. Alnylam’s print itself ran in this beat on October 30; the reimbursement detail is the new element.
Keytruda biosimilars face a slow start even as they approach the market, according to a BioPharma Dive analysis of the FDA review queue and pharmacy benefit manager dynamics. Merck’s checkpoint inhibitor is the largest single biosimilar target in the industry, but the analysis argues that rebate structures and PBM preferences for the branded product will blunt early uptake, the same pattern seen with Humira copies. It sits alongside today’s Fresenius and WuXi agreement, which is a bet that scale and first to market timing, rather than price alone, decide biosimilar returns.
STAT reports that new studies are raising safety and efficacy doubts about mitochondrial replacement therapy, the three parent IVF technique this beat covered yesterday as an investigation into fertility tourism. The follow up reporting questions whether the technique reliably prevents mitochondrial disease in offspring, which is the premise on which clinics in several countries are selling it. No regulator action accompanied the reporting.
Sentira has integrated Anthropic’s Claude AI into 10x Genomics’ Chromium single cell platform, Genetic Engineering News reports, a tools deal aimed at automating analysis of single cell experiments. No financial terms were disclosed. Separately, a STAT report on mouse research found the lasting benefits of psilocybin proved elusive in animals; it is preclinical work with no direct read through to the human trials under way elsewhere in the sector.
Amgen reports third quarter results after the close today, November 3, the last of the scheduled large cap prints flagged in yesterday’s edition. Vertex’s results, released after Monday’s close, are covered as a full story in today’s edition.