Sales of Amylyx Pharmaceuticals' ALS drug, Relyvrio, beat Wall Street's fourth-quarter expectations on Thursday. AMLX stock bounded well above its 50-day line in morning trades.
During the December quarter, Relyvrio generated $108.4 million in sales. That topped projections ranging from $99.5 million to $106.5 million, Mizuho Securities analyst Graig Suvannavejh said in a report. Relyvrio treats ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.
"We are quite pleased (and admittedly relieved) to see Amylyx's top-line beat with respect to net product sales," Suvannavejh said.
In response, AMLX stock soared 21.1% to 18.54. That put shares well above their 50-day line, according to MarketSmith.com.
AMLX Stock Is Tied To Relyvrio's Growth Trajectory
Now, investors are focusing on Relyvrio's ultimate growth profile. The drug faced an uphill battle to win Food and Drug Administration approval in late 2022. But sales have gained rapidly. On a year-over-year basis, fourth-quarter Relyvrio sales climbed 395%. Sequentially, sales advanced almost 6%.
But that massive year-over-year growth is expected to slow as Relyvrio faces tougher comparative sales periods. In the first quarter, AMLX stock analysts call for 57% sales growth. For the rest of the year, sales growth is expected to be between 22% to 25% — still strong, but slowing from the initial launch.
"On Relyvrio, our areas of focus during the call this morning will be Amylyx's comments regarding the number of net patient adds and the current discontinuation rate which, while providing additional gauges on the trajectory of Relyvrio's growth, perhaps more importantly, were key sources of investor concern last quarter," Suvannavejh said.
Profit Lags Expectations
It's important to note that Amylyx's earnings lagged expectations, coming in at 7 cents per share vs. Wall Street's estimate for 23 cents, according to FactSet. Suvannavejh noted other AMLX stock analysts expected Amylyx to earn 21 cents to 22 cents per share.
The company also updated the timeline for several studies. Amylyx is running a study to confirm the benefits of Relyvrio in ALS patients. It now expects to have the results from that study during or before the second quarter. Previously, Amylyx projected having results in the second quarter.
Amylyx is also studying Relyvrio in patients with Wolfram syndrome, a disease that causes high blood sugar and progressive vision loss. It expects to have the results of that Phase 2 study in the second half of the year.
Suvannavejh kept his buy rating and 27 price target on AMLX stock.
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