Adults who used inhaled steroids as children in order to get control over their asthma may be shorter than they otherwise would have been, but only by a little, according to U.S. researchers. Results, released on Monday, of a long-term asthma study concluded that children who took inhaled steroids before they entered puberty were around a half-inch shorter as adults as compared to those who did not take the drugs.
Doctors have acknowledged since the 1990s that inhaled steroids used for asthma can hinder the growth process, but researchers had considered these children would eventually catch up. This was mostly good news, according to Dr. Gail Weinmann of National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, a part of the National Institutes of Health, which supported the study.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) edged down on Friday, extending a weekly as well as a monthly fall. Merck Serono has recently created Quartz Bio as part of a 30 million-euro ($37.8 million) pledge to help the establishment of spin-off and start-up companies focused on ongoing activities and compounds that originated at Merck Serono.
The stock’s price decreased in the last trading session with a previous 52-week high of $45.17. The stock was trading on above-average volume. The stock traded at a volume of 27.58 million shares at a price loss of -0.16%. The share price is now up 16.16% for the past three months. Latest closing price was 43.69% above its 50-day moving average and 39.98% above its 200-day moving average.
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) is expected to capture headlines today as it has received EU marketing authorization for INLYTA. While trading at volume higher than average, the stock climbed 0.08% yesterday. Its previous 52-week high was $24.49 and moved up 27.94% over the same period, trading at a volume of 6.8 million. Shares have risen 13.13% over the trailing 6 months. The stock is currently trading 2.35% above its SMA 50 and 9.89% above its SMA 200.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) closed higher in the last trading session after a decision to pay $181 million to settle consumer fraud claims by 36 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Over the last 12 months, a return on equity of 14.26 percent was realized due to the financial situation and earnings per share reached a value of $3.14. Last fiscal year, $2.44 has been paid in the form of dividends to investors. Earnings are projected to move up 6.69 percent for the coming five years. The stock closed at $67.43, up 0.22 points or 0.33% from its previous close and at a distance of -0.25% from 20-day simple moving average.
Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE:BMY) moved down -3.54% in this year and its price history showed most recently beta was at 0.44. Over the last 12 months, the percentage change in the price was 12.89%, hitting the highest of $36.34 on Jul 02, 2012 while its lowest level in that period was $28.37 on Sep 06, 2011.