A string of negative news continues to bombard MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) on the street even on shedding more than 90% in market value over the past one year. Just 12 months ago, the stock was trading at $4.07 a share but now it is struggling to rise above the $1 a share mark.
Cash Woes
Having lost $30 million in the recent quarter essentially begs the question whether the biotech company has what it takes to rise above the current lows. Compounding MannKind woes in the industry is its inhaled insulin product Afrezza that has failed to gain traction in the wake of Sanofi SA (ADR) (NYSE:SNY) returning back commercial rights.
Termination of a marketing partnership with the giant French company means the company faces an uphill task as it moved to re-launch Afrezza given its tight budget. With a paltry $63.7 million in cash, the company can no longer rely on traditional marketing to fuel sales. MannKind needs to play within its reach even as it explore ways to ramp up sales for Affreza.
Marketing Drive
Social media has emerged as a perfect spot as the company relies banks viral marketing to achieve the desired sales. Focusing marketing efforts on diabetes specialists as well as patients already taking insulin shots could help the company prevent cash runaway. However, getting doctors to prescribe the product promises to be a challenge given the lack of long-term safety data to support the same.
Unprecedented future is what MannKind faces given the size of its cash balance. Even on significantly reducing expenditure on marketing, the company still faces the risk of running out of cash on failing to attain the desired amount of sales
Bankruptcy bells could start ringing if MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) does not find a solution to its cash problems in the near future. The only way it can achieve the same is by pursuing viral marketing campaigns on social networks in the effort of triggering demand for Affreza.
