The flu season may fall a bit flat for MedImmune (NASDAQ:MEDI). On Friday, while many biotech stocks took a hit, MedImmune was at the forefront after Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) announced it would not carry the company's much-ballyhooed nasal flu vaccine, FluMist, in its pharmacies.

As discussed in September, one of the more compelling elements of the FluMist launch was its distribution through an outlet as ubiquitous as Wal-Mart. However, there were some hefty obstacles. For one, it's expensive compared to the traditional needle vaccine. And it's only approved for healthy people aged 5 to 49.

According to Wal-Mart, the last-minute withdrawal has to do with questions about whether it is legal for pharmacists in certain states to administer the vaccine.

Although other retail outlets such as Safeway (NYSE:SWY) and Albertson's (NYSE:ABS) are signed on to provide the vaccine, that's small consolation after losing Wal-Mart. With so large a retail partner signed off, it seems less likely than ever that FluMist will become a household name -- at least for now.

In truth, makers of the injectable version, Aventis SA (NYSE:AVE) and Chiron Corp. (NASDAQ:CHIR), may not have been too worried given the wildly divergent prices of the vaccines, but this new development could have them breathing even easier.

Shares of MedImmune, which said it still expects to reap $120 million to $140 million from FluMist sales this year, dropped 6% to $28.18 on Friday. That's a 33% decrease from its 52-week high. Shares of Wyeth, MedImmune's FluMist partner, slipped about 0.5% to $44.34.

Despite the fanfare surrounding the no-stick vaccine, the October/November campaign against flu may be a bit of a non-event for MedImmune. Sounds like a pretty good time to say, better luck next year.

Alyce Lomax welcomes your feedback at [email protected].