Pharmaceutical sector-related ETFs stood out Thursday after Horizon Pharma (HZNP) revealed positive test results for its treatment of thyroid eye disease, or TED.
Among the better performing non-leveraged ETFs of Thursday, the First Trust Nasdaq Pharmaceuticals ETF (NasdaqGM: FTXH) rose 1.8%, Invesco Dynamic Pharmaceuticals ETF (NYSEArca: PJP) gained 1.5% and SPDR Pharmaceuticals ETF (NYSEArca: XPH) increased 2.3%. Both FTXH and PJP were also testing their long-term resistance at the 200-day simple moving average.
Horizon Pharma shares surged 32.5% Thursday following the release of positive test results in its Phase 3 trial of its thyroid eye disease drug, teprotumumab, TheStreet reports.
HZNP makes up 4.0% of FTXH’s underlying holdings, 3.0% of PJP’s holdings and 2.6% of XPH.
According to the pharmaceutical company’s reports, merely 83% of TED patients given teprotumumab had a “meaningful improvement in in proptosis, or bulging of the eye,” the main cause of morbidity in the disease.
Horizon announced it will submit an application for a biologics license mid-year to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its proposed treatment of the thyroid eye disease. The company will also revealed detailed data later this year to a peer-reviewed journal and to a medical conference.
If the FDA approves teprotumumab, Horizon’s new drug would be the first on the market to treat TED, a rare eye disease that afflicts as many as 20,000 people each year in the U.S.
A “progressive, debilitating autoimmune disease,” TED can cause eye bulging, misalignment of the eyes, double vision and, in some cases, blindness, according to Horizon.
“The dramatic results of the teprotumumab Phase 3 confirmatory trial … form a highly convincing body of clinical evidence supporting teprotumumab for the treatment of active thyroid eye disease,” Timothy Walbert, chairman, president and CEO of Horizon, said in a note. “This is a key milestone as we evolve into a research-focused company.”
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