It has been a turbulent few months for GSK (GSK) and its investors. The group hiked earnings guidance in May after a strong first quarter, only to see its shares tumble a few weeks later following an inauspicious ruling in the litigation cases relating to heartburn drug Zantac. Now it appears a revised recommendation from US health regulators will hurt sales of one of the company’s key vaccines, Arexvy.
The jab is designed to protect adults against RSV, a common respiratory virus that can cause serious illness in vulnerable individuals. Both Pfizer (US:PFE) and Moderna (US:MRNA) have produced competitor vaccines, although Arexvy was the first on the market. Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advised everyone over 60 to get immunised against RSV – which was seemingly good news for market leader GSK.
However, after reviewing the data, a CDC committee said vaccines should be restricted to the 75-plus cohort, with exceptions for 60-74 years olds with pre-existing conditions. “This move was characterised by one speaker as protecting ‘the worried well’ from any risks,” said UBS analyst Jo Walton. “And if it turns out that re-boosting is not possible, [the decision] keeps the vaccine for use only when a patient is most likely to get a benefit.”