ALC vs ALNY Comparison

Alcon is one of the leading visioncare companies in the world. Following nine years as a Novartis subsidiary, it was spun off as a public company in April 2019. Alcon operates in two segments: visioncare and surgical. Visioncare comprises contact lenses, lenscare solutions, and a suite of ocular health products. With brands like Dailies, Total1, and Air Optix, Alcon controls about one fourth of the US contact lens market. Surgical comprises intraocular lenses, ophthalmic surgical equipment, and consumables used during surgeries. Its main products include Centurion, a phacoemulsification device used during cataract surgeries, and a portfolio of IOLs including PanOptix and Vivity. Alcon has one of the largest installed bases of eye surgical equipment in the world.

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals is a leader in the study of RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics. RNAi is a naturally occurring biological pathway within cells for sequence-specific silencing and regulation of gene expression. Alnylam has five drugs on the market: Onpattro and Amvuttra for hATTR amyloidosis, Givlaari for acute hepatic porphyria, Oxlumo for primary hyperoxaluria type 1, and Leqvio for hypercholesterolemia. It also has several clinical programs across various therapeutic areas: genetic medicines; cardio-metabolic diseases; hepatic infectious diseases, and CNS/ocular diseases. Upfront fees from research partnerships have boosted Alnylam's cash levels, and the company stands to see additional milestones and royalties from drugs commercialized under collaboration partnerships.