Shares of healthcare companies slipped as investors evaluated the continued spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19.
Moderna shared evidence of waning coronavirus vaccine immunity after one year in a study it said strengthens the argument that fully vaccinated people still need booster shots.
The Justice Department, continuing its fight against a roughly $4.5 billion settlement that will shield the family who owns OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma from opioid lawsuits, is seeking to pause the deal until after federal appeals courts have weighed in on the agreement. U.S. Trustee William Harrington, who is part of the Justice Department unit monitoring the nation's bankruptcy courts, said in a Wednesday court filing that U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain was wrong to approve the settlement earlier this month and said his ruling authorizing the deal between Purdue and its Sackler family owners will likely be overturned by a higher court.
Hong Kong-based Prenetics Group is going public on the Nasdaq Stock Market via a special-purpose acquisition company, in a deal that values the medical diagnostic startup at $1.25 billion. Prenetics, which saw revenue surge during the coronavirus pandemic, will merge with Artisan Acquisition, a blank-check company founded by Adrian Cheng, grandson of the late Hong Kong real estate and jewelry magnate Cheng Yu-tung.
Write to Amy Pessetto at amy.pessetto@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
09-16-21 1735ET
