Amylin Pharmaceuticals Shares Popped Again: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of biotechnology company Amylin Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: AMLN  ) are soaring for a second day in a row, up as much as 14% earlier in the trading session, following the FDA's approval of Bydureon.

So what: Developed using Alkermes' drug-release technology, Bydureon is a long-lasting form of Amylin's currently marketed twice-a-day injectable drug, Byetta, which is used to treat diabetes. Bydureon only needs to be taken once a week, and many pundits believe it has the potential to become a $1 billion drug within three years.

Now what: Amylin had a rough go of things prior to this approval. Bydureon had been rejected by the FDA twice before, and Eli Lilly, which had been marketing Byetta, discontinued its relationship with Amylin in November. Even approval of Bydureon doesn't guarantee Amylin success because diabetes is a very overcrowded space, but it does put Amylin back on the buyout radar for larger pharmaceutical companies with rapidly aging pipelines.

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