Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ shares fell as much as 14% in post-market trading after the company said its next-generation non-opioid pain candidate, VX-993, failed to meet the main goal in a Phase-2 study of patients recovering from bunionectomy surgery. As a result, Vertex will halt development of the intravenous drug as a stand-alone treatment for acute pain and will focus instead on evaluating it in diabetic peripheral neuropathy. The Boston-based drugmaker also scrapped plans to launch a late-stage study of its already approved pill Journavx for sciatica, following discussions with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that suggested a broad peripheral neuropathic-pain label is unlikely. Vertex said it will run a second Phase-3 trial of Journavx in diabetic neuropathy as its first potential chronic-pain indication. The pipeline setbacks overshadowed better-than-expected quarterly results. Second-quarter revenue rose 12% from a year earlier to $2.96 billion, and adjusted earnings were $4.52 a share, topping the $4.26 analysts projected. Sales of cystic-fibrosis therapies remained the main driver, while Journavx generated $12 million in its first full quarter on the market. Vertex reaffirmed its 2025 revenue forecast of $11.85 billion to $12 billion.