After the
Following the failure of Intercept Pharmaceuticals’ (ICPT) Ocaliva (obeticholic acid) for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in June, the company was set to be acquired.
GlobalData maintains that without any other late-stage candidates in its portfolio and with its share price falling precipitously, an acquisition was the best, and perhaps only, option for Intercept (NASDAQ:ICPT).
While Ocaliva is approved for primary biliary cholangitis, that market is small compared to that for NASH. GlobalData projects a total of 600,000 PBC cases in major markets in 2027.
The data and analytics firm said the NASH market size is projected to exceed $25 billion by 2029. “As a result, Intercept’s future rested on its potential in NASH,” said Jay Patel, a pharmaceutical analyst. by GlobalData.
He added that Intercept’s (ICPT) inability to become a leader in NASH prevented it from becoming a larger pharmaceutical company. Ocaliva’s bankruptcy at NASH caused a drop in the company’s stock price, forcing it to fund other programs.
Patel noticed that Intercept’s (ICPT) portfolio, such as INT-787, a Phase IIa asset for severe alcohol-associated hepatitis, complements Alfasigma’s focus on metabolic and gastroenterological diseases.
The Italian pharmaceutical company markets Xifaxan (rifaximin) to reduce the risk of overt hepatic encephalopathy and irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea, as well as carnitine (L-carnitine) for carnitine deficiency in patients with end-stage renal disease.