2020 will forever be remembered as the year the world came face to face with the COVID-19 pandemic. Millions of people around the world contracted the virus with hundreds of thousands of victims.
AS of June 2020, the world is still waiting for an effective vaccine, while clinical trials are underway and showing promising initial results in some cases.
The pandemic has thrust Pharma stocks into the limelight. We had many requests from traders around the world looking to diversify into pharma stocks. We took that to heart and added a number of these to our list of tradable assets.
Gilead Sciences Inc.
Stock Symbol: GILEAD
A research-based biopharmaceutical company, Gilead Sciences, currently carries over twenty-five marketed treatments in the United States for HIV and Aids, Liver Diseases, Hematology and Oncology, Cardiovascular Disease and Inflammation and Respiratory Disease. Incorporated in the State of Delaware, Gilead went public in 1992 and has a workforce of over 11,000 employees.
Gilead is currently in phase-3 trials for Remdesivir, a COVID-19 drug.
Merck KGaA
Stock Symbol: MERCK
Founded in Darmstadt, Germany, in 1668 by Friedrich Jacob Merck, the Company is still primarily owned by the Merck family. Active in 66 countries and with around 57,000 employees, the Company generated sales of €16.2 billion in 2019. The Company is active in all areas of pharmaceutical production and food safety and is heavily involved in the performance material sector for a broad and diverse range of industries.
Amgen Inc.
Stock Symbol: AMGEN
Founded in the United States in 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world’s leading independent biotechnology companies. Operating worldwide, the Company currently employs approximately 22,000 staff around the globe.
Focused on six therapeutic areas: cardiovascular disease, oncology, bone health, neuroscience, nephrology, and inflammation, the Company generated sales of $22.2 billion in 2019.
Dynavax Technologies Inc.
Stock Symbol: DYNAVAX
Dynavax Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: DVAX) is a fully-integrated biopharmaceutical company focused on leveraging the power of the body’s innate and adaptive immune responses through Toll-like Receptor (TLR) stimulation. Dynavax develops and commercializes novel vaccines.
The Company’s first commercial product, HEPLISAV-B® [Hepatitis B Vaccine (Recombinant), Adjuvanted], a hepatitis B vaccine for adults, is approved in the United States. 2019 saw product revenue of $34.6 million.
Biogen Inc.
Stock Symbol: BIOGEN
Founded in 1978 in Geneva, Switzerland, Biogen helped pioneer the biotechnology industry. Biogen founder Walter Gilbert, Ph.D., won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for his work in DNA sequencing.
A leader in the development of treatments for Multiple Sclerosis, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, and Alzheimer’s Disease, Biogen’s revenues in 2019 were over $14.3 billion, for a 4.5% increase in total revenues year over year.
Biotest AG
Stock Symbol: BIOTEST
Founded in 1946 in Germany, Biotest markets different products in three therapeutic areas: clinical immunology, hematology, and intensive care medicine. The Company is active globally, with locations in Europe, South America, and the Russian Federation.
2019 saw revenues of over €419 million, and the Company embarked on an ambitious expansion program with investments of over €300 million planned for their Dreieich location with the creation of over 300 new jobs in the region.
Moderna Inc
Stock Symbol: MRNA
Founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States in 2010, Moderna is one of the leading pharmaceutical companies developing mRNA (Messenger RNA) medicines that use a patient’s own cells to produce proteins necessary to treat a wide range of diseases.
Moderna is active in the areas of Infectious Diseases, Immuno-Oncology, Rare Diseases, Cardiovascular Diseases, and Autoimmune Diseases and currently has 21 candidates in development and 13 in clinical studies.