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Biotech Stock Roundup: BMY Increases Dividend, MRNA's Study Results & More
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The biotech sector has been in focus over the past week with regular pipeline and regulatory updates. Strategic collaborations were also in the spotlight.
Recap of the Week’s Most Important Stories:
Bristol Myers Ups Dividend: Bristol-Myers SquibbCompany’s (BMY - Free Report) board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend of 54 cents per share, up 10.2% over last year’s rate of 49 cents per share. The dividend will be paid out on Feb 1, 2022, to stockholders of record at the close of business on Jan 7, 2022. The annual dividend rate for fiscal 2022 is $2.16 per share on this rate. Concurrently, the board also authorized the repurchase of an additional $15 billion of common stock. As a result, the company’s total outstanding share repurchase authorization is approximately $15.2 billion. Shares gained on the same.
Bristol-Myers also entered into a license, development and commercialization agreement with Immatics whereby the former will secure global exclusive license to Immatics’ TCR bispecific program IMA401. Per the terms, Immatics will receive an upfront payment of $150 million as well as up to $770 million in development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments, in addition to tiered double-digit royalty payments on net sales of IMA401. Immatics retains the options to co-fund U.S. development in exchange for enhanced U.S. royalty payments and/or to co-promote IMA401 in the United States.
Foghorn Gains on Lilly Collaboration: Shares of Foghorn Therapeutics Inc. (FHTX - Free Report) surged 54.96% after the company announced a collaboration with Loxo Oncology at Lilly, a research and development group of pharma giant Eli Lilly and Company (LLY - Free Report) .
Both the companies announced a collaboration to create novel oncology medicines by applying Foghorn's proprietary Gene Traffic Control platform. The partnership includes a co-development and co-commercialization agreement for Foghorn's selective BRM oncology program and an additional undisclosed oncology target. The collaboration includes three additional discovery programs using Foghorn's proprietary Gene Traffic Control platform. Per the terms, Foghorn will receive an upfront consideration of $300 million in cash for the agreement. Lilly will also make an equity investment of $80 million in FHTX’s common shares at a price of $20 per share.
Foghorn will lead discovery and early research activities. Lilly will lead development and commercialization activities with participation from FHTX in operational activities and cost-sharing for the BRM-selective program and the additional undisclosed target program. Foghorn and Lilly will share equally in the U.S. economics.
Pipeline Update From Moderna: Moderna (MRNA - Free Report) shares were down after the company reported data from the phase I study of its quadrivalent seasonal flu vaccine candidate, mRNA-1010. mRNA-1010 successfully boosted hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) assay geometric mean titers against all strains 29 days after vaccination at all doses tested in both younger and older adults. In the phase I study, mRNA-1010 was evaluated at 50 µg, 100 µg and 200 µg dose levels in younger adult (age 18-49) and older adult (age 50+) cohorts. However, investors were mostly likely disappointed as it reportedly failed to show superiority compared to a popular flu vaccine and others in the pipeline. Moderna also reported that the phase II study of mRNA-1010 is now fully enrolled and preparation for the phase III study is underway. Moderna has initiated a phase II study to evaluate three dose levels — 25 µg, 50 µg and 100 µg — of mRNA-1010 in November.
Regulatory Update From Aprea: Aprea Therapeutics, Inc. (APRE - Free Report) announced that the FDA has removed the full clinical hold on its study evaluating the combination of its lead compound, eprenetapopt, with acalabrutinib or with venetoclax and rituximab in lymphoid malignancies.
The FDA had placed a clinical hold on the lymphoid malignancy program in August 2021 owing to concerns over the safety and efficacy data from the phase III frontline study in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). The FDA’s concerns referred to the safety and efficacy data from the company’s phase III frontline clinical trial in MDS. The regulatory body also placed a partial clinical hold on several studies evaluating eprenetapopt in combination with azacitidine, including a phase III frontline MDS. All these studies were put on clinical hold due to concerns about the safety and efficacy data from the frontline MDS study.
Performance
Medical - Biomedical and Genetics Industry 5YR % Return
The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index has lost 1.24% in the past five trading sessions. Among the biotech giants, Regeneron has gained 5.65% during the period. Over the past six months, shares of Moderna have soared 33.8%. (See the last biotech stock roundup here: Biotech Stock Roundup: ACAD Up on Study Results, BHVNs Pipeline Update & More)
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What's Next in Biotech?
Stay tuned for more pipeline and regulatory updates.
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Biotech Stock Roundup: BMY Increases Dividend, MRNA's Study Results & More
The biotech sector has been in focus over the past week with regular pipeline and regulatory updates. Strategic collaborations were also in the spotlight.
Recap of the Week’s Most Important Stories:
Bristol Myers Ups Dividend: Bristol-Myers Squibb Company’s (BMY - Free Report) board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend of 54 cents per share, up 10.2% over last year’s rate of 49 cents per share. The dividend will be paid out on Feb 1, 2022, to stockholders of record at the close of business on Jan 7, 2022. The annual dividend rate for fiscal 2022 is $2.16 per share on this rate. Concurrently, the board also authorized the repurchase of an additional $15 billion of common stock. As a result, the company’s total outstanding share repurchase authorization is approximately $15.2 billion. Shares gained on the same.
Bristol-Myers also entered into a license, development and commercialization agreement with Immatics whereby the former will secure global exclusive license to Immatics’ TCR bispecific program IMA401. Per the terms, Immatics will receive an upfront payment of $150 million as well as up to $770 million in development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments, in addition to tiered double-digit royalty payments on net sales of IMA401. Immatics retains the options to co-fund U.S. development in exchange for enhanced U.S. royalty payments and/or to co-promote IMA401 in the United States.
Bristol-Myers currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Foghorn Gains on Lilly Collaboration: Shares of Foghorn Therapeutics Inc. (FHTX - Free Report) surged 54.96% after the company announced a collaboration with Loxo Oncology at Lilly, a research and development group of pharma giant Eli Lilly and Company (LLY - Free Report) .
Both the companies announced a collaboration to create novel oncology medicines by applying Foghorn's proprietary Gene Traffic Control platform. The partnership includes a co-development and co-commercialization agreement for Foghorn's selective BRM oncology program and an additional undisclosed oncology target. The collaboration includes three additional discovery programs using Foghorn's proprietary Gene Traffic Control platform. Per the terms, Foghorn will receive an upfront consideration of $300 million in cash for the agreement. Lilly will also make an equity investment of $80 million in FHTX’s common shares at a price of $20 per share.
Foghorn will lead discovery and early research activities. Lilly will lead development and commercialization activities with participation from FHTX in operational activities and cost-sharing for the BRM-selective program and the additional undisclosed target program. Foghorn and Lilly will share equally in the U.S. economics.
Pipeline Update From Moderna: Moderna (MRNA - Free Report) shares were down after the company reported data from the phase I study of its quadrivalent seasonal flu vaccine candidate, mRNA-1010. mRNA-1010 successfully boosted hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) assay geometric mean titers against all strains 29 days after vaccination at all doses tested in both younger and older adults. In the phase I study, mRNA-1010 was evaluated at 50 µg, 100 µg and 200 µg dose levels in younger adult (age 18-49) and older adult (age 50+) cohorts. However, investors were mostly likely disappointed as it reportedly failed to show superiority compared to a popular flu vaccine and others in the pipeline.
Moderna also reported that the phase II study of mRNA-1010 is now fully enrolled and preparation for the phase III study is underway. Moderna has initiated a phase II study to evaluate three dose levels — 25 µg, 50 µg and 100 µg — of mRNA-1010 in November.
Regulatory Update From Aprea: Aprea Therapeutics, Inc. (APRE - Free Report) announced that the FDA has removed the full clinical hold on its study evaluating the combination of its lead compound, eprenetapopt, with acalabrutinib or with venetoclax and rituximab in lymphoid malignancies.
The FDA had placed a clinical hold on the lymphoid malignancy program in August 2021 owing to concerns over the safety and efficacy data from the phase III frontline study in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). The FDA’s concerns referred to the safety and efficacy data from the company’s phase III frontline clinical trial in MDS. The regulatory body also placed a partial clinical hold on several studies evaluating eprenetapopt in combination with azacitidine, including a phase III frontline MDS. All these studies were put on clinical hold due to concerns about the safety and efficacy data from the frontline MDS study.
Performance
Medical - Biomedical and Genetics Industry 5YR % Return
Medical - Biomedical and Genetics Industry 5YR % Return
The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index has lost 1.24% in the past five trading sessions. Among the biotech giants, Regeneron has gained 5.65% during the period. Over the past six months, shares of Moderna have soared 33.8%. (See the last biotech stock roundup here: Biotech Stock Roundup: ACAD Up on Study Results, BHVNs Pipeline Update & More)
What's Next in Biotech?
Stay tuned for more pipeline and regulatory updates.