AMRN Is Victorious In A Case Against The FDA
Amarin Corporation (NASDAQ:AMRN) has been in the midst of a court battle with the United States Food and Drug Administration since May 7th, 2015. The suit had to do with off-label use of Vascepa Capsules. Essentially, the United States FDA believed that AMRN should not be able to promote Vascepa in any way not approved by the FDA. However, the courts sees it the other way around. In a decision late yesterday, the court ruled that AMRN may engage in truthful and non-misleading speech promoting the off-label use of Vascepa Capsules. In a statement, John F. Thero, president and CEO at AMRN had the following to say...
We are pleased to announce this amicable resolution with and among the physician plaintifs, FDA and the U.S. government and look forward to continuing to promote Vascepa in a truthful, non-misleading and responsible manner... With more truthful and non-misleading information readily available to the healthcare professionals about the potential of Vascepa to improve cardiovascular health, this settlement serves the public interest by supporting informed medical decisions for tens of millions of patients with persistent high triglycerides.
How The Market Reacted To The News
As investors, we know that the news moves the market. The reality is that lawsuits happen in business all the time, and when they happen around publicly traded companies, they have a tendency of causing the markets to move in a big way. When the company loses the case, we can expect to see big declines, and when the company wins the case, we can expect to see big gains. So, in this particular case, it's no surprise that we're seeing big gains on AMRN as the result of its victory over the United States Food and Drug Administration. Currently (9:40), AMRN is trading at $1.68 per share after a gain of $0.13 per share or 8.38% thus far today.
What We Can Expect To See Moving Forward
Moving forward, I have an overwhelmingly bullish opinion of what we can expect to see from Amarin. The truth is that the company has beat the FDA at its own game and is now allowed to promote Vascepa capsules in an entirely new way. When I first heard the story that Vascepa, a weight-loss treatment also had positive effects on the hearts of patients taking it I was astonished. The reality is that the average weight loss pill causes the heart to race and can put added stress on the body. Even if these pills weren't dangerous to the heart, they generally did not help improve heart health. So naturally, finding a weight loss treatment that does improve heart health is an incredible breakthrough in the field of medicine. With the recent court decision, ruling that AMRN is free to promote the heart benefits of Vascepa in a truthful and non-misleading way, I'm expecting for Vascepa sales to climb in a big way, leading to strong revenue, earnings, and ultimately gains in the value of the stock. All in all, things are looking great for AMRN.