Pfizer has won FDA approval of a product developed by Wyeth, which Pfizer bought last year for $68 billion. And it’s a biggie — a updated version of the world’s best-selling vaccine Prevnar. See the Pfizer announcement.
The new version of the childhood vaccine called Prevnar 13 is intended to fight six more varieties of ear infections, meningitis and pneumonia than the current version of the vaccine. Pfizer says the new vaccine will cover 90% to 95% of the causes of pneumococcal disease in the U.S. Here’s more fromthe Associated Press.
Prevnar posted sales of $2.7 billion in 2008 and Credit Suisse analyst Catherine Arnold estimates that Prevnar 13 will have $5.9 billion in sales in 2015, more than any other single Pfizer product, according to the WSJ. “We think it is the most important value driver for the future of Pfizer,” she said.
Pfizer has been counting on the addition of Wyeth’s pipeline to help offset patent expirations, including global top-seller Lipitor that loses protection starting late next year. Wyeth has had approval for Prevnar 13 on the horizon for a long time and that was a key reason Pfizer was willing to shell out so many billions for its rival.
In another piece of good news for Pfizer today, a panel of experts from the CDC recommended the vaccine’s routine use for children between two months and 59 months.