Tercica Shares Surge on Settlement

Shares of Tercica Surge As Rival Agrees to Stop Marketing Competing Drug

NEW YORK-- Shares of drug maker Tercica Inc. surged Wednesday, a day after a rival agreed to stop marketing a competing drug.
Tercica and partner Genentech Inc. had sued a Glen Allen, Va.-based drug maker called Insmed Inc. Insmed makes Iplex, which treats growth disorders. Under a settlement announced late Wednesday, Insmed agreed to stop selling Iplex as a drug treating growth disorders.

Analysts called the settlement a big win for Tercica. BMO Capital Markets analyst Thomas Shrader said Tercica no longer has to share the spotlight with Insmed. Plus, the Brisbane, Calif.-based company can now focus its attention on doctors instead of lawyers.

Shares of Tercica rose 87 cents, or 16.3 percent, to $5.77 on the Nasdaq Stock Market. In late afternoon trading today, TRCA is continuing to climb---up 22% to $5.95 per share.

What's the drug?
A complex term helps explain why some children are much smaller than others their age. Insulin-like growth factor deficiency, or IGFD, is a term that describes lower than expected levels in the body of Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1), a naturally occurring hormone that plays a central role in growth. The drug is a human recombinant [man-made] insulin growth factor that is injected into children with severe primary IGF-1 deficiency. When injected, the insulin receptor binds it and leads to intracellular signaling to growth.