Amgen (AMGN) signaled it intends to become the third powerhouse developer in the booming weight loss drug segment on Thursday, as two of its top executives delivered positive comments about the progress of its obesity candidate Maridebart Cafraglutide (MariTide, formerly AMG 133)—comments that propelled Amgen shares to their biggest gain in 15 years Friday.
Addressing analysts on his company’s quarterly earnings call following the release of first-quarter results, chairman and CEO Robert A. Bradway said Amgen was “very encouraged with the results” gleaned from an interim analysis of data from a Phase II trial (NCT05669599) comparing participant responses to three selected doses of MariTide with responses to placebo.