Category Archives: oud

BlackBerry Q4 Revenue Falls Far Short Of Estimates As Stock Tumbles

Deep in a turnaround effort that aims to slow its sinking revenue growth and return it to profitability, BlackBerry ( BBRY ) turned in mixed results Friday morning that sent its stock crashing. The provider of smartphones and security software reported revenue of $464 million for its fiscal Q4 ended Feb. 29, down 30% from the year-earlier quarter and missing the consensus estimate of $563.2 million. But it reported a per-share loss minus items of 3 centers where analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a 10-cent loss. BlackBerry stock was down more than 7%, near 7.50, in early trading in the stock market today . BlackBerry stock is down 19% in 2016 so far. The company, however, said that its software and services revenue rose 106% to $153 million, exceeding its estimates. “Overall, BlackBerry’s Q4 performance was solid as we made progress on the key elements of our strategy, which are to grow software faster than the mobility software market, achieve device profitability and generate positive free cash flow,” CEO John Chen said in the company’s earnings release. “Our strategy is on track and our growth engines are in place to continue to generate above-market growth in software and achieve our profitability objectives.” The smartphone maker that once dominated the field prior to the Apple ( AAPL ) iPhone, followed by Android from Alphabet ( GOOGL ), is pivoting to other areas. BlackBerry has made several acquisitions in the last two years, among them its $425 million purchase of Good Technology. The deal widely expanded BlackBerry’s security software platform to other smartphones and operating systems.

Regeneron-Sanofi Drug Clears Eczema, Sparks Debate On Market Size

Big biotech Regeneron Pharmaceuticals ( REGN ) and its big pharma partner Sanofi ( SNY ) said Friday that their potential blockbuster eczema drug candidate sailed through late-stage trials and would be submitted for approval in Q3 of this year. Regeneron’s and Sanofi’s drug dupilumab cleared or nearly cleared the symptoms of atopic dermatitis (eczema) in more than a third of patients, compared with less than 10% of patients in the placebo group, in two clinical trials comprising a total of 1,379 people. Patients on dupilumab in general average around a 70% improvement in the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI), whereas the placebo group improved in the 30% to 40% range. “There are no approved systemic therapies in the U.S. for people with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis, underscoring the clear unmet need,” Sanofi R&D head Elias Zerhouni said in a statement. “In the U.S., where dupilumab in AD (atopic dermatitis) has been granted Breakthrough Therapy designation by the U.S. FDA, we plan to submit a regulatory application in the third quarter of this year and will work to bring this innovative therapy to patients as quickly as possible.” Evercore ISI analyst Mark Schoenebaum wrote that analysts’ consensus peak annual sales estimate for dupilumab is $4 billion, but there’s quite a bit of variation between individual analysts. “We believe that the current debate for dupilumab is focused on the size of commercial opportunity — it is also in late stage studies for severe asthma (where dupilumab demonstrated high efficacy in phase two in an all-comers population) as well as chronic sinusitis with nasal polyps and eosinophilic esophagitis,” Schoenebaum wrote in an email to clients. “A/D is a relatively new market segment and dupilumab is one of the first therapeutic candidates that could address the high unmet need. … The commercial opportunity in severe asthma may be similarly attractive; however, dupilumab will be facing a more crowded competitive landscape in asthma.” Regeneron stock was up more than 4% in early trading on the stock market today , near 378, but Sanofi stock was down a fraction, near 40. Regeneron stock touched a 17-month low below 349 on March 17.