Novartis Faces Setbacks in Key Drug Trials for Myotonic Dystrophy and Cholesterol
Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) has experienced two major late-stage clinical trial failures, raising concerns about its growth pipeline. The experimental drug del-desiran failed to meet primary endpoints in a study for myotonic dystrophy type 1, despite being one of the key assets acquired through Novartis' $12 billion purchase of Avidity Biosciences. This failure is particularly impactful given the high expectations placed on it as part of the acquisition strategy. The setback follows another recent disappointment with pelacarsen, a cholesterol drug that also failed in its late-stage trial. These consecutive failures have intensified scrutiny over CEO Vas Narasimhan’s leadership and Novartis’ ability to replace revenue from aging products like Entresto before patent expirations. Despite the setbacks, the company has reaffirmed its 5%-6% annual sales growth target through 2030. However, analysts are now questioning how achievable that goal is without these key drugs contributing. Novartis remains optimistic about other pipeline candidates such as remibrutinib, which recently succeeded in a late-stage multiple sclerosis trial and could potentially generate billions annually.
Tickers: $NVS
Topics: acquisition strategy CEO pressure drug trials pipeline setbacks