After Drug Trial Fizzles, Sarepta Still Seeks Broad Approval (1)

Normally when a drug fails to show a clear effect in a final-stage trial, the company developing it goes back to the drawing board. But not Sarepta Therapeutics Inc.

Late Monday, the company said a trial of its $3.2 million gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy failed to clearly slow the disease in a year-long trial of 125 young kids with the progressive muscle-wasting disease. The company’s stock declined 37% Tuesday, wiping out $3.76 billion in market value.

But Sarepta said that secondary measures of patients’ movement in the trial were positive, and it plans to go ahead and ...