Intercept shares rocket on positive liver drug results

12 August 2014

Shares of US drug developer Intercept Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ICPT) leapt 53% to $358.07 in after-hours trading on Monday after the company updated on several developmental compounds, notably its drug to treat liver disease, obeticholic acid (or OCA), was effective in mid-stage trials.

Analysts believe the drug, assuming it gains regulatory approval, has a multi-billion-dollar sales potential.

Obeticholic acid was tested in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a form of liver inflammation, for which there is no approved treatment. The company said liver scarring did not worsen in 46% of NASH patients who were given the drug, compared with 21% in the placebo group.

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