Health Winners & Losers: Medtronic

Medtronic climbs on better-than-expected quarterly earnings.
By Elizabeth Trotta ,

Health-related stocks generally followed the broader markets down Tuesday.

Amgen

(AMGN) - Get Report

said Monday after market close that in a late-stage, one year head-to-head trial, its Denosumab resulted in more bone mineral density mass gain than

Merck's

(MRK) - Get Report

Fosamax in 500 post-menopausal women. Wall Street analysts, who have worried about the rate of infection with Denosumab, saw it as a positive that the company said occurrences were well-balanced between the arms of the study. However, the company didn't disclose if any infections were considered serious or led to hospitalization.

Wall Street expects data from the three-year, phase III "Freedom" study in the second half of the year -- comparing Fosamax and Denosumab in terms of fractures. Amgen will also report data later this month from a different one-year, head-to-head study involving 1,000 patients, although it already disclosed the study met its primary goal. Amgen shares were up 15 cents, or 0.4%, at $42.49 Tuesday.

In other news, Merck said Tuesday that it reached civil settlements with attorneys general from 29 states and the District of Columbia to resolve previously disclosed investigations under state consumer protection laws related to marketing activities for Vioxx. The company took the drug off the market in 2004 after it was linked to heart attacks.

As part of the agreement, the company reportedly agreed not to ghostwrite positive articles about its products, not to use scientific data deceptively in marketing materials, and to submit all TV ad campaigns to the Food and Drug Administration for review, prior to release, and to delay them if requested by the regulatory agency.

Merck shares edged down 28 cents, or 0.7%, to $39.74.

In earnings,

Medtronic

(MDT) - Get Report

added $1.02, or 2.1%, to $48.90 after sharing its quarterly results Tuesday. The medical device company said that factoring out restructuring and buyout charges it earned 78 cents a share on $3.86 billion in revenue in its fiscal fourth quarter. It surpassed expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters who predicted 72 cents a share on revenue of $3.72 billion.

Looking ahead, Medtronic expects to earn between $2.94 and $3.02 a share for fiscal 2009, on revenue between $15 billion and $15.5 billion. Analysts had pegged $2.96 a share on $15.1 billion in revenue.

Elsewhere, DellaCamera Capital Management sent

Enzon Pharmaceutical's

(ENZN)

board a letter demanding it explore all strategic alternatives including the sale of commercial operations as a whole. The pharmaceutical company said earlier in May that it will spin off its biotechnology business, but DellaCamera said shareholders need to see more concrete and immediate action from the company to increase value.

Among other things, DellaCamera portfolio manager Richard Mansouri lamented that Enzon executives were overpaid and that the company hasn't shown appropriate interest in partnering opportunities for the biotechnology company spinoff.

DellaCamera owns 5.9% of Enzon. The company's shares added 12 cents, or 1.4%, to $8.87.

In analyst actions, Roth Capital initiated coverage on

Obagi Medical Products

( OMPI) with a buy rating and a $14 price target. That stock was up 22 cents, or 2.9%, at $8.05.

Enzon and Obagi are both components of the Nasdaq biotechnology index, which was 0.5% at 800.04.

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