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Updated: May 25, 2026

Self-Administration of Drugs in Mouse Models of Feeding and Obesity
Published on: June 8, 2021
Does innovation in obesity drugs affect stock markets? An event study analysis
Jorge V Pérez-Rodríguez1, Beatriz González López-Valcárcel
1Department of Quantitative Methods in Economics and Business, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas (Canary Islands), Spain. jvperez@dmc.ulpgc.es
Objective:
This study empirically analyzes the effects of public information about the pharmaceutical R&D process on the market valuation of the sponsoring firm. We examined the market's response to scientific news and regulatory decisions about an antiobesity drug, rimonabant, and the effects on the sponsoring company (Sanofi-Aventis) and its incumbent competitors (Abbott and Roche).
Methods:
Event study methodology was used to test the null hypothesis of no market response. We covered the full life cycle of rimonabant (1994-2008), using a data set of daily closing price and volume.
Results:
The results suggest that scientific news in the initial stages of the drug R&D process (i.e., drug discovery, preclinical and clinical trials) had no significant effects. However, news related to regulatory decisions, such as recall or safety warning, had significant negative effects on the company's market value. No spillover/contagion effects on competitor firms were detected.
Conclusion:
Market reactions occur at the time when the regulator takes decisions about drugs. Scientific news, even those of high-impact, may pass unnoticed.
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