Daily Brief Health Care: Bio Techne Corp, InxMed, Novo Nordisk, Penumbra , Soleno Therapeutics , Novartis , Elanco Animal Health and more

• Bio-Techne delivered its first-quarter fiscal year 2026 results amidst a challenging market environment.
• Despite the company’s strategic and disciplined efforts, organic revenue declined by 1%, primarily due to timing issues in their Cell Therapy business from large customers and the ongoing softness in biotech funding.
• These timing issues were particularly impacted by FDA Fast Track Designations received by key customers that, while accelerating therapy approval timelines, reduced the near-term demand for reagents.

• InxMed is a clinical-stage biotechnology company with a strategic focus on overcoming cancer drug resistance and metastasis, primarily targeting the Chinese market.
• The company’s lead asset, Ifebemtinib (a FAK inhibitor), is being developed as a cornerstone of combination therapies across a range of solid tumors, a strategy that could unlock significant value where monotherapies have previously failed.
• While the pipeline holds promise, InxMed faces substantial risks typical of a clinical-stage biotech, including the inherent uncertainty of clinical trial outcomes, a competitive landscape for its targeted pathways (FAK and FAP), and the financial risks associated with drug development.

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• Novo Nordisk’s earnings report for the first nine months of 2025 reflects a complex financial and strategic landscape.
• The company reported a 15% rise in sales and a 10% increase in operating profit.
• The growth in sales was largely driven by the U.S. and international operations both showing robust performance, although the company has tempered future expectations by adjusting guidance to 8-11% sales growth and 4-7% for operating profit due to anticipated slower growth in its key GLP-1 treatments for diabetes and obesity.

• Penumbra, Inc. reported its financial results for the third quarter of 2025, delivering solid performance across its business segments.
• The company achieved a total revenue of $354.7 million, marking a year-over-year increase of 17.8% on a reported basis and 16.9% in constant currency.
• This growth illustrates progress in executing Penumbra’s strategy and enhancing its technological and market position.

• Soleno Therapeutics has achieved a major milestone with the recent FDA approval of its lead drug, VYKAT™ XR (diazoxide choline extended-release tablets), for the treatment of hyperphagia (excessive hunger) in patients with Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS). This marks the first approved therapy specifically for this debilitating symptom of the rare genetic disorder, representing a significant commercial opportunity.
• The company is now transitioning to a commercial-stage entity, with the U.S. launch of VYKAT™ XR expected to commence in April 2025. This pivotal shift from a clinical-stage to a revenue-generating company is a key inflection point for Soleno.
• While the FDA approval is a major de-risking event, the company’s future success will depend on a successful commercial launch, market adoption by physicians and patients, and navigating the competitive landscape of potential future treatments for PWS.

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• The FDA’s recent green light for Novartis’s gene therapy Itvisma marks a major commercial and clinical milestone for the Swiss drugmaker.
• Itvisma is an updated version of Zolgensma, previously limited to infants under age 2 with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), and will now treat older patients aged 2 and up.
• This approval significantly expands the addressable market for one of the rare commercial successes in the struggling gene therapy sector.

• Elanco Animal Health’s third quarter of 2025 showcased a robust performance and a revised, optimistic outlook for the year, reflecting growth in several key areas while also indicating certain challenges.
• The company reported a 9% organic constant currency growth in the quarter, surpassing the high end of their guidance for revenue, adjusted EBITDA, and adjusted EPS.
• This marks the ninth consecutive quarter of total underlying growth, driven primarily by a 20% increase in U.S. Farm sales and 9% growth in U.S. Pet Health.