MedImmune Pulling Ahead As AstraZeneca R&D Engine, Contributing Half Of Pipeline

MedImmune LLC has unveiled a plethora of positive Phase II and Phase III data for large-molecule candidates in a variety of therapeutic areas lately, adding ballast to the projections of Pascal Soriot, CEO of parent AstraZeneca PLC, that his company has a pipeline offering the potential to raise annual sales revenue to more than $45 billion by 2023.

Soriot, who joined AstraZeneca from Roche in 2012 and reworked both the pipeline and R&D focus, made that claim during a May 6 investor briefing to argue that the U.K.-headquartered pharma should remain independent, rather than consider merger overtures from competitor Pfizer Inc. ([A#14140506004]). At the J.P