Healthcare setback in September
After enjoying quite a run of outperformance, the Healthcare sector came under pressure in September. The main macro event of the month was the large US Fed rate cut, which buoyed growth sectors at the expense of the more defensive corners of the market. This dynamic was also present within the healthcare sector, with Medtech relatively outperforming Pharma.apa
Overall, we see this as a temporary setback as markets adjust to a new interest rate trajectory, as well as a testament to sector’s strong YTD performance in the form of profit-taking.
World Lung and ESMO
Two major oncology conferences took place this month; World Lung in San Diego and ESMO in Barcelona.
The star of the show at World Lung was Summit and Akeso’s PD1xVEGF antibody. Its results in advanced NSCLC were better than the current standard of care, which has not been improved in over 8 years. While there are many caveats to this data, such as the lack of diversity of the patient population, this may be the beginning of a new era in immuno-oncology.
ESMO was also a packed conference; for more info, check out our thoughts from the street here.
Endocrinology at EASD
The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) conference in Madrid was highly awaited and widely attend following the large strides made in the understanding and treatment of diabetes, obesity, and associated diseases in the past few years.
New obesity drugs such as those in the incretin class (e.g. GLP-1), represent the start of a broader wave of development. However, their mechanisms of action, along with their added benefits and potential side-effects, are not yet fully understood.
Check out our thoughts from the street at EASD here.
Top 5 this month:
- Pro Medicus + 21%
- Insulet + 15% Approval
- Eurofins + 11%
- Straumann + 11% Broker upgrade
- GE Healthcare + 11% Broker upgrade
Source: Bloomberg Finance L.P., Kieger
Bottom 5 this month:
Biomarin -23% Competitor data
Kyowa Kirin -22% Negative data
Daiichi Sankyo -21% Negative data
Novo Nordisk -11% Data, congress hearing
Moderna -11% R&D day
Chart of the Month
This chart shows that adult obesity in the US is expected to grow from 40% in 2020 to almost 50% in 2050.
Both obesity and type 2 diabetes are risk factors for the accumulation of fat in the liver, a disease called MASLD. MASLD can cause liver failure and could affect around 1/3 of the US population in 2050.
If diagnosed early, lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise can halt or even reverse liver damage. For people affected, however, new treatments are being developed. Check out our video on this subject here.
This news article has been issued through Kieger AG and is for distribution only under such circumstances as may be permitted by applicable law. This document is for information purposes only and does not constitute an offer. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. The details and opinions contained in this document are provided by Kieger without any guarantee or warranty and are for the recipient’s personal use only. All information and opinions contained in this document are subject to change without notice. This document may contain statements that constitute “forward looking statements”. A number of risks, uncertainties and other important factors could cause actual developments and results to differ materially from our expectations. Data source: Statestreet / Factset.
