A scrap of data on Amgen’s obesity drug candidate wipes out $12 billion in market value

On Tuesday, a tiny shred of data on Amgen’s lead obesity candidate — not yet verified — erased $12 billion in market value.

The data, spotted by an analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald, focused on concerns about potential side effects with the drug, called MariTide. Once they were shared widely in an investor note, the company’s shares fell 7%, a reminder that its stock is in a highly precarious position ahead of a critical readout of the therapy.

Analyst Olivia Brayer found the data, which were previously unreported, in hidden tabs of a file attached to a Nature Metabolism publication of early trial results for MariTide. The hidden tabs contained what appeared to be results showing study participants experiencing loss of bone mineral density, especially among those in the group taking the highest doses of the drug, Brayer said.

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