Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc Shares Performs Better

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. shares advanced 2.88% to $574.62 Thursday. This proved to be an all-around favorable trading session for the stock market, with the S&P 500 Index SPX rising 0.52% to 4,319.94 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA rising 0.38% to 34,633.53.Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. closed $90.02 short of its 52-week high ($664.64), which the company achieved on July 20th. The stock outperformed some of its competitors Thursday, as Johnson & Johnson JNJ rose 0.74% to $165.96, Novartis AG ADR NVS rose 0.45% to $91.65, and Amgen Inc. AMGN rose 1.29% to $246.90.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. volume (1.3 M) eclipsed its 50-day average volume of 782,439. This was the stock’s third consecutive day of gains. The Pharmaceuticals company announced that scientists from the Regeneron Genetics Center® have discovered rare genetic mutations in the GPR75 gene associated with protection against obesity.

As reported in Science, almost 650,000 people were sequenced to find rare individuals with this genetic superpower, providing new insights into the genetic basis of obesity. Potential therapeutics mimicking these genetic superpowers are being developed at Regeneron, utilizing its VelocImmune technologies and novel technologies from collaborators such as Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

It is estimated that more than one billion people could be suffering from obesity by 2030.1,2 Working with research collaborators, RGC scientists found that individuals who have at least one inactive copy of the GPR75 gene have lower BMI and, on average, tend to weigh about 12 pounds less and face a 54% lower risk of obesity than those without the mutation. Protective ‘loss of function mutations was found in about one of every 3,000 people sequenced.