AstraZeneca added 16p to 2724.5p after it submitted an application to the US regulator for its blood clot preventer Brilinta.
If approved, this could open the way for its entry into a multi-billion dollar market, where it will compete with Sanofi-Aventis and Bristol-Myers Squibb's Plavix product. Brilinta has already been submitted for approval in Europe. Commenting on the latest test results for Brilinta, analysts at Panmure Gordon said:
AstraZeneca reported that Brilinta showed a two-day offset improvement compared with Plavix in the phase II trial data presented yesterday at the American Heart Association. The offset data does still provide a clear point of differentiation from the market incumbent, but we are left slightly underwhelmed as we were hoping for a more significant improvement. We maintain our above-consensus forecasts for Brilinta and keep our hold recommendation and £31 price target.
