Merck and Co Inc (MRK)

[DewDiligence]

ACIP endorses PFE’s Prevnar-20 for_adults_65+_or_19+_ with_medical_conditions:

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211020006069/en

ACIP also endorsed MRK’s V114 for the same patient pool—but only if followed by Pneumovax. Requiring only one shot—and having broader serotype coverage—is a clear marketing edge for PFE in what will be a very large market.

[webdev2016]

$MRK 100

[Stock_Barber]

Because it moved up on fake news! Of course it is headed back down!

[Agoura Guy]

DOW UP OVER 500 POINTS AND MRK IS ***RED***!!!!!!!!

[Lowjack]

Make sure to take your VIX with your Ivermectin!

[webdev2016]

$MRK 100

[DewDiligence]

Also ENTA:
https://s22.q4cdn.com/306858242/files/doc_presentations/2021/10/Enanta-Corporate-Presentation-10.4.21.pdf

[Stock_Barber]

Ten days have passed since Merck dropped its bombshell announcement about Molnupiravir, its "revolutionary" anti-viral that purports to lessen severe COVID and death by half in vulnerable unvaccinated patients.

But as scientists warn about potential unexamined safety issues with molnupirvavir, analysts at Goldman Sachs are reminding clients that Merck is hardly alone in the race to produce an effective antiviral that could function like the Tamiflu of COVID.

Looking ahead to Q42021 and on to Q12022, Goldman is looking forward to drug readouts from Roche, Pfizer, Shionogi and others developing oral antivirals. Goldman's discussions with clients about the potential influence of antiviralls "...indicate that key questions about oral antivirals largely center on: 1) clinical differentiation among the various programs; 2) data and approval timelines, supply, and pricing; and 3) the potential for pediatric and prophylactic use. Within, we size up the market potential and TAM with our market model and frame key upcoming readouts for the late stage programs. We also provide a list of upcoming catalysts in the category."

For investors seeking "exposure to the antiviral theme", Goldman recommends 1) Roche, as preclinical data for its AT-5227 suggest "differentiation" vs. molnupiravir, 2) Shionogi, whose S-217622 represents an alternative to RNA polymerase therapies, and 3) Divi's Labs, which will ride molnupiravir's coattails.

[Stock_Barber]

So a few kids will be born without teeth and without parts of their skulls... is that a problem if Merck can make money?

[Agoura Guy]

Cancer causing Molnupiravir is a FLOP, Merck should pull this toxic poison from the market immediately before too much damage is done. Massive class action lawsuits are coming Merck's way if they don't.

[Stock_Barber]

Molnupiravir is a prodrug of nucleoside analogue ß-D-N4-hydroxycytidine (NHC), which could potentially be incorporated in mammalian DNA.

One study determined there was evidence that the drug could potentially drive mutagenesis in both viral RNA and mammalian DNA. “It seems unlikely that a short course of therapy would spare the host from this exposure because both RNA precursors that affect the virus and DNA precursors that would affect the host pass through the common ribonucleoside diphosphate intermediate,” concludes an article in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

SVB Leerink analyst Dr. Geoffrey Porges predicts that FDA would restrict who has access to the drug over safety concerns, according to Barron’s.

In the Phase 3 trial of the drug, the side effects of COVID-19 are apparently worse than that of molnupiravir as patients in the placebo group were more likely to withdraw early than recipients of the drug.

An August article published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases found that ß-D-N4-hydroxycytidine (NHC, initial metabolite of molnupiravir) “displays host mutational activity in an animal cell culture assay, consistent with RNA and DNA precursors sharing a common intermediate of a ribonucleoside diphosphate. These results indicate highly active mutagenic ribonucleosides may hold risk for the host.”

Last year, the former Head of U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) Rick Bright opposed granting additional funding to develop the drug, partly over safety concerns related to the drug. In a complaint summarized in Science, Bright wrote that “similar experimental drugs in this class had been shown to cause reproductive toxicity in animals, and offspring from treated animals had been born without teeth and without parts of their skulls.”

The Science article also quotes the Emory University chemist Raymond Schinazi who stated that his previous pharmaceutical company, Pharmasset, abandoned a similar drug in 2003 after discovering its mutagenic properties.

[Stock_Barber]

“When someone is infected by a virus, it makes the cells in their body produce copies of itself. This drug works by causing the machinery that reproduces Covid-19’s genetic material to make mistakes, thereby stopping effective replication. That mode of action could cause problems with our own cells, and while reports are that the drug is well tolerated, we still don’t have full details of any side effects. It’s worth noting that people involved in the trial were instructed to abstain from heterosexual sex or use contraception. While this is routine practice with some other medicines, such as cancer chemotherapy, it suggests that the drug has the potential to cause birth defects should someone become pregnant.

“This news is positive, but we must not be carried away. It would be good for the 50% of patients that it could save from getting seriously ill, but not so much for those who are still hospitalised, despite taking it. There’s currently no way of knowing which group someone will be in. It’s worth remembering that another drug, dexamethasone, was found to save around a third of people who would have died with severe Covid-19, but its clinical introduction did not prevent nearly 100,000 deaths in the UK in the past twelve months.

[webdev2016]

$MRK yes

[Stock_Barber]

"Proceed with caution at your own peril, said one scientist who studied the primary ingredient in molnupiravir. Another warned that "biochemistry won't lie": "there is a concern that this will cause long-term mutation effects, even cancer."

[webdev2016]

Cover soon man. $MRK 100

[Stock_Barber]

Exactly correct!

Anyone who is dumb enough to take this shit will find themselves staring in the mirror in a few years after getting a cancer diagnosis asking themselves "What was I thinking"?

It isn't even like this is a theory... it WILL happen to many people!

[webdev2016]

Lol

[Stock_Barber]

It is different... much different!

During the height of the "pandemic", with no known medications available, they decided to give the current vaxes an EUA and take a gamble.

There is no reason to take the same gamble on this cancer tablet!

Cancers take years to grow...

This pill will cause cancers... it prevents your immune system from removing cancer cells before they can cause a problem!

The immune system kills spontaneous blood cancer cells every day!

[xZx]

MRK under heavy accumulation since last week -- eyes on the prize.

[rynlrt]

Long term data? Yeah the covid vaccines had tons of long term data...not

[Stock_Barber]

MRK is trading up on misinformation!

The pill data is being spun... the FDA isn't that stupid!

The risks are long term (cancer), and without long term data, it cannot be approved. There are equally effective drugs that have a proven safety profile.

[BottomBounce]

$MRK high estimate of 107.00

[webdev2016]

Yup

[rynlrt]

This is fun

[Stock_Barber]

Microwave ovens are safe... phones are not.

People need their phones, they don't need the Merck poison!

[rynlrt]

Target price of 92. Guarantee we see it this week or next

[rynlrt]

Microwaves and phones cause cancer too. I dont see the use of those going down.

[Stock_Barber]

I am very well researched in Aspartame, and while many people have side effects from it (myself included) medical research does not include cancer among them...

In general, the American Cancer Society does not determine if something causes cancer (that is, if it is a carcinogen), but we do look to other respected organizations for help with this. Based on current research, some of these organizations have made the following determinations:

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has concluded that “the use of aspartame as a general purpose sweetener… is safe.”
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has stated, “Studies do not suggest an increased risk associated with aspartame consumption for… leukaemia, brain tumours or a variety of cancers, including brain, lymphatic and haematopoietic (blood) cancers.”
Though research into a possible link between aspartame and cancer continues, these agencies agree that studies done so far have not found such a link.

Molnupiravir WILL cause cancer!

[rynlrt]

Lol that is not what they thought caused cancer. It's aspartame and other artificial sweeteners and drinks like diet coke. The point is you could argue practically anything causes cancer. It's worthless information. We all live and are more likely to already have the genetics that will give us cancer. What we consume barely changes genetics.

[Stock_Barber]

Diet Coke does not cause cancer.

Saccharin (not in Diet Coke) was thought to be carcinogenic. It has since been proven otherwise.

Molnupiravir WILL cause cancer!

It suppresses the body's ability to clean up cancer cells in our bodies... which our bodies do normally and constantly!

[webdev2016]

Agree $MRK 100

[rynlrt]

Yeah just like saying diet coke gives people cancer.

[Stock_Barber]

Sure... who cares if the pills cause cancer... and they will!

The metabolites of the drug can be incorporated into human DNA. What happens when human cells mutate?

"The concern would be that mutations in host DNA could contribute to the development of cancer, or cause birth defects either in a developing fetus or through incorporation into sperm precursor cells. It seems unlikely that a short course of therapy would spare the host from this exposure because both RNA precursors that affect the virus and DNA precursors that would affect the host pass through the common ribonucleoside diphosphate intermediate."

The drug is a precursor to the ingredients used to make both RNA and DNA. As it creates mutations in virus RNA, it also creates mutations in human DNA.

I wouldn't take these pills under any circumstances!

[xZx]

yep, it's the american way. no other nation on earth allows pharma to grab taxpayer money for R&D, then turn around and soak them, with a 41.7 X markup.

i will cheer MRK if my calls finish nice and green, then ring the register, and save the profit -- to cover future medical bills.

unfortunately, life is a pre-existing condition.

good luck to all!

[tw0122]

Buy!buy!! Merck marking up the price of the pill forty times cost. Huge profits to be made.

A five-day course of Merck’s new Covid-19 pill costs $17.74 to produce, but the pharma firm will charge the USA $712.

The US government gave Merck some $29 million towards the development of molnupiravir, a drug that the company says “reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by approximately 50%” in clinical trials on Covid-19 patients. Despite this generous funding, Merck will still charge the federal government an estimated $712 for a five-day course of pills that costs $17.74 to produce, meaning the US taxpayer will pay for this fortyfold mark-up.

[webdev2016]

YES

[xZx]

MRK whales loaded the dip for next week.

[Agoura Guy]

Merck's own Ivermectin is highly effective against COVID-19 and safe. Big pharma has tried to suppress Ivermectin data so they can keep pushing their untested experimental bioweapon jabs and other expensive options.

[xZx]

makes sense, the MRK pill may be of use in hardest-hit areas of the US where hospitals are overwhelmed, or antibody cocktails are unavailable.

another application is for mild cases of COVID before anyone reaches a hospital.

news out of india today suggests "mild" cases may become a larger potential market for molnupiravir than "moderate" COVID cases.

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/aurobindo-pharma-stop-molnupiravir-trial-moderate-covid-19-patients-2021-10-08/

although data from US trials doesn't corroborate their findings.

[DewDiligence]

I personally wouldn’t take molnupiravir for COVID-19 if I had the option of getting one of the authorized antibody cocktails. Molnupiravir may be a better fit for emerging markets where infusion centers and antibody access are hard to come by.

p.s. I'm long ENTA.

[xZx]

the morbidity and mortality of COVID makes the side effect profile of therapeutics a bit different.

but also, what about other drugs?

for example, safety concerns of imuran are very real. it carries a warning about potential cancer risks. yet people use it to control life-threatening autoimmune disorders.

humira is much the same.

methotrexate has a warning of possible "sudden death".

let's include diagnostics -- CT scans carry a cancer risk, too.

so i'm not disagreeing with your point at all, it's a valid one, but let's frame it in the bigger picture.

risk vs reward.

[DewDiligence]

Actually, the safety concern with molnupiravir is very real; here's a recent peer-reviewed article on the topic:

https://academic.oup.com/jid/article/224/3/415/6272009

Note that molnupiravir is a prodrug of NHC, the active metabolite.

[webdev2016]

Relax man. $MRK to 100

[Agoura Guy]

Molnupiravir is dangerous, there is no long term test data. Once again the FDA is in violation of its own rules because corrupt officials are bribed by big pharma.

Molnupiravir should be banned!

[xZx]

i actually agree with your point. but a mere 61 people follow what's said here. want to change minds, instead of annoying a handful of people?

go to twitter.

[Agoura Guy]

Merck is ripping off sick people charging $700 per treatment!!!! That IS a money grab.

Despicable!

[xZx]

MRNA was a money grab. have you seen the chart? everyone is buying MRK, or any pharma stock, to make a profit.

trade the market you're given, not the one you want.

[Agoura Guy]

Merck's other drug, Ivermectin is twice as effective and 1/40th the price!

Molnupiravir is nothing but an obscene money grab scam!!!

[BottomBounce]

$MRK 12-month price forecasts for Merck & Co Inc have a median target of 93.50, with a high estimate of 107.00 and a low estimate of 82.00. The median estimate represents a +15.52% increase from the last price of 80.94.

https://money.cnn.com/quote/forecast/forecast.html?symb=mrk

[webdev2016]

The miracle pill $MRK 100