Merck & Co. Begins Production Of Covid-19 Antiviral Pills

Oct 28, 2021 By MarketDepth

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Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK), an American multinational pharmaceutical company, announced it is prepared to generate and distribute millions of doses of its Covid-19 antiviral pills, if they manage to receive U.S. authorization. The company said that the drug could produce anywhere between USD5 Billion and USD7 Billion in sales by the end of 2022.

“Right now, we’re on pace to have 10 million courses ready before the end of this year, and more than double that next year.”

Merck CEO Robert Davis Told Squawk Box

Merck had previously said that its covid-19 drug, Molnupiravir, reduces the chances by half of dying or hospitalization for those at risk of developing severe Covid-19. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) outside advisers are set to meet in November to vote on whether or not to grant approval. If approved, Molnupiravir will become the first oral antiviral drug for Covid-19.

“I can tell you through the data we’ve seen and the studies we’ve done, we think this is a safe drug.”

Merck CEO Robert Davis Told Squawk Box

In June, the drug maker entered an agreement with the U.S. government to supply 1.7 million doses of molnupiravir for a cost of USD1.2 Billion, once it gains FDA approval.

Stock Up After Beating Expectations

After topping Wall Street expectations with quarterly results, the stock shot up about 2% during premarket trading Thursday. Furthermore, the company raised its full-year profit on thursday after increased demand for its cancer drug, Keytruda.