Medicure Slumps on Drug Trial Disappointment

TORONTO (Reuters) - Medicure Inc's (MPH.TO) shares lost more than 80 percent of their value on Monday after the company said the Phase 3 trial for its key MC-1 heart drug failed to meet its primary endpoint.

Shares of the small biotechnology company were down 67 Canadian cents, or 84 percent, at 13 Canadian cents on the Toronto Stock Exchange by noon, after dropping to as low as 10.5 Canadian cents earlier in the day.

The company, which released the results of the trial after markets closed on Friday, said it does not plan on submitting an application for MC-1 marketing approval to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at this time.

Medicure said the pivotal Phase 3 MEND-CABG II clinical trial did not meet the primary endpoint designed to evaluate the effect of MC-1, versus placebo on the incidence of cardiovascular death or nonfatal myocardial infarction following coronary artery bypass graft surgery.

The company said the trial, which cost it about C$30 million ($30 million), did not lead to any meaningful conclusion.

The disappointing results prompted analysts to downgrade the shares of the company, already mired in penny stock status.

Claude Camire, an analyst at Paradigm Capital, slashed his share target to 45 Canadian cents from C$3.00 and downgraded his recommendation to "sell" from "buy."

Camire, who termed the results "a bad surprise" in a note to investors, said the decision to scrap the MC-1 development leaves the company with little in its pipeline other than its Aggrastat acute coronary syndrome drug.

"Medicure has already halted clinical development of its other drugs due to a lack of cash. This new situation may force the company to re-evaluate its options, including licensing of Aggrastat to specialized pharmaceutical companies," Camire wrote.

"We now value Medicure significantly lower given the reposition that will be required."

Douglas Loe, an analyst at Versant Partners also punished the company, slashing its share price value to 10 Canadian cents and dropping his rating to "sell" from "speculative buy."

($1=$1 Canadian)

(Reporting by Scott Anderson; Editing by Rob Wilson)