Why VIVUS Lost in November

VIVUS' (NAS: VVUS) stock was down 25% for November, though still up 15% for the year. Its drug Qsymia is the first obesity drug to be approved and reach the market in more than a decade, but its sales are lagging. Because only 20% of patients are able to get the drug covered by insurance, there is currently a 30% abandonment rate of patients who decide they can't afford to keep taking it. The stock did rally a bit at the end of the month when Aetna announced that it would begin covering Qsymia and Arena's (NAS: ARNA) Belviq in the same space, so investors are optimistic that as insurance coverage widens, sales will improve.

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The article Why VIVUS Lost in November originally appeared on Fool.com.

David Williamson has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Follow him on Twitter @MotleyDavid. Max Macaluso has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. The Motley Fool has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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