Most analysts polled have some version of this to say, about the live R&D Day webcast Merck will conduct tomorrow morning, starting at 8:30 a.m. EDT:
. . . .expectations are fairly low, here -- not much real news is expected from the conference. . . .
Just the same, I'll listen in, and live-blog at least some of it -- on the off chance that some important development is disclosed. [Merck will essentially re-do the presentation, in an abridged fashion, on Thursday, at a Banc of America health care investors' conference.] Hey -- wait! -- wasn't it B of A that came out to defend Merck's stock on the day that Goldman Sachs downgraded it? Right. It was.
In any event, see below,
▲ Bridion (suggamadex) won't be resubmitted to FDA for approval in 2010 -- now it will be in 2011. Another delay for suggamadex; not a huge surprise -- after the non-approval in the summer of 2008.
▲ The MK 2578 (peglyated erythropoietin) candidate program has been discontinued due to regulatory feedback that cardiovascular risk studies would be required.
▲ Tredaptive is back -- planning US FDA filing in 2012 (this is the one Carrie Cox, in Spring 2008, predicted was only 60 days away from approval -- but the FDA rejected it!), because the required 25,000 patients have been enrolled in the FDA re-submission study. Yawn.
Like I said, not much terribly new and exciting (on the upside), here. UPDATE -- this will be a problem [Click to enlarge]:
