Axsome Therapeutics Reports Accelerating AUVELITY Prescriptions Following Alzheimer's Agitation Launch

Axsome Therapeutics is seeing accelerated prescription adoption for its central nervous system drug AUVELITY following an expansion of its commercial sales force and the launch for Alzheimer's disease agitation, according to reporting by Yahoo Finance based on executive presentations at Morgan Stanley's Global Healthcare Conference.

Chief Financial Officer Nick Pizzie disclosed that AUVELITY reached a record 3,800 weekly new-to-brand prescriptions on the Friday preceding the conference, following three consecutive weeks of peak volume. The pace represents an increase from average weekly new-to-brand prescription levels of approximately 2,400 in the first quarter and 3,000 in the second quarter. Patients aged 65 and older now represent roughly 31% of new-to-brand prescriptions, up from about 19% in the four weeks prior to regulatory approval for the Alzheimer's agitation indication.

Chief Operating Officer Mark Jacobson stated that the commercial effects of both the expanded field organization and the Alzheimer's agitation launch are expected to materialize over one to two quarters. Axsome has more than doubled its commercial organization and established a dedicated long-term-care team. Pizzie highlighted that AUVELITY currently holds 89% coverage across total covered lives, including 100% Medicare coverage, with first-line or first-switch positioning across a majority of covered plans.

To support clinician adoption for Alzheimer's disease agitation, the company introduced a sampling program featuring a three-week titration pack. Jacobson noted that sample distributions are converting into prescriptions, though conversion rates can fluctuate during early rollout phases. Axsome expects its third-quarter financial results to provide a clearer view of launch dynamics and is considering sharing additional metrics when reporting its first full quarter under the new indication.

Management reiterated its long-term peak-sales model of $8 billion for AUVELITY, split evenly at $4 billion each for major depressive disorder and Alzheimer's disease agitation. In major depressive disorder, AUVELITY held approximately 26 basis points of the total antidepressant market at the end of the second quarter, representing an annualized sales run rate near three-quarters of a billion dollars. Securing 1% of the broader market would represent over $3 billion in annual sales.

Addressing corporate financials, management expects revenue growth to outpace operating expenses in the second half of the year, supporting progress toward positive cash flow and eventual profitability. Pizzie pointed to second-quarter selling, general, and administrative expenses of $208 million—which absorbed the bulk of sales-force expansion costs—as a reference point for second-half spending. Second-quarter research and development expenses reached $46 million and are expected to increase modestly as the company conducts five concurrent Phase 3 clinical trials.

Axsome is also advancing several clinical programs across its portfolio. The company anticipates a fourth-quarter readout from its ENGAGE trial of solriamfetol in binge eating disorder, alongside ongoing pediatric studies in ADHD following a completed adult trial. For AXS-12 in cataplexy and narcolepsy, which carries a PDUFA target date of May 1, 2027, management projects a $500 million to $1 billion commercial opportunity. Additionally, Axsome recently initiated the Phase 3 SUMMIT study evaluating AUVELITY for smoking cessation.