News--Celgene Shares Jump on Revlimid Outlook

I will post more on how the drug works in a bit.........

Celgene Shares Gain on Positive Study and Market Outlook for Revlimid


NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of biopharmaceutical company Celgene Corp. jumped Thursday on positive news that its cancer treatment Revlimid could be beneficial for multiple myeloma patients.

Shares of Celgene gained $1.83, or 3.3 percent, to $57.31 in afternoon trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The stock has traded between $36.02 and $60.12 over the last 52 weeks, and is off nearly 4 percent since the start of the year.
The drug was first approved to treat anemia and then to treat multiple myeloma, or blood cancer, in combination with the steroid dexamethasone. But that second approval is for patients who have already at least one prior treatment. A study released Wednesday by The Eastern

Cooperative Oncology Group said the drug improved survival rates, in combination with lower-than-normal doses of steroids for recently diagnosed patients.
In March the European Medicines Agency gave the drug a positive recommendation for approval.

Full results of the recent study will be presented at American Society of Clinical Oncology's June conference.

Merrill Lynch analyst Thomas McGahren reaffirmed a "Buy" rating with a $73 price target, suggesting upside of 31.5 percent over the stock's closing price Wednesday of $55.60, citing the research.

"We look for final results of the ECOG trial at ASCO in June, but it appears that a standard of care front-line treatment of Revlimid plus low-dose dex (dexamethasone) is taking shape," he wrote in a note to investors.

Piper Jaffray analyst Rachel L. McMinn reaffirmed a "Outperform" rating and boosted her price target to $68 from $63, also citing the study and drug's potential future market position.
"We expect the results will have a profound impact on the market acceptance for Revlimid -in combination with L-Dex- as a cornerstone of myeloma therapy," she wrote.

Other analysts reaffirmed positive outlooks including Lazard Capital Markets with a "Buy" rating and $70 price target.