Biogen investors have been on a wild ride over the last year, and on Wednesday they experienced their first major jolt in 2020.
The company prevailed in its high-stakes patent challenge from Mylan, giving Biogen a win as it continues defending its big-selling multiple sclerosis drug Tecfidera from would-be copycats.
Last year, Tecfidera pulled in $4.43 billion for the drugmaker, or about 30% of its global sales.
Mylan had challenged Biogen’s ‘514 patent on Tecfidera that expires in 2028. Early last year, Biogen disclosed the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office decided to strike up an inter partes review.
In the decision this week, the patent judges determined that Mylan has “not demonstrated by a preponderance of the evidence the unpatentability of claims” it challenged.
RELATED: Biogen faces multibillion-dollar Tecfidera loss if Mylan wins latest patent threat
Meanwhile, Wall Street analysts and others are keeping a close eye on Biogen’s Alzheimer’s drug candidate aducanumab, which the company had abandoned after it failed to show efficacy in late-stage trials last year. But then in October, Biogen shocked the biopharma world when it said it planned an FDA submission based on a review of larger datasets. The company now plans a filing early this year.
RELATED: Already prepping for Alzheimer’s launch, Biogen scouts ‘top talent’ and talks pricing
Biogen’s shares jumped about 23% on the news Wednesday.
