Pfizer declines about 8% after setback to breast cancer treatment

(Reuters) – Shares of Pfizer Inc fell nearly 8% on Monday after an independent data monitoring committee determined the drugmaker’s breast cancer treatment was unlikely to meet the main goal of a late-stage study.

The treatment, Ibrance, was being tested along with the standard of care for early breast cancer in men and women, against standard of care alone, the company said on Friday.

The study was broadly seen to have a high probability of success readout, but the early failure represents a meaningful setback for Pfizer, JP Morgan analysts said in a note, cutting its price target on the stock by $1 to $37.

At least three other brokerages cut their price targets on the stock.

Ibrance, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2015 for metastatic breast cancer, brought in sales of $4.96 billion in 2019.

Shares of Pfizer fell 7.7% to $35.25 in early trade.

(Reporting by Trisha Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)