Biotech Alert: Searches spiking for these stocks today

These names in the biotech sector are seeing a substantial increase in search activity today, as determined by InvestingChannel. They include:

• Revance Therapeutics (RVNC), 825% surge in interest
• Trevena (TRVN), 307% surge in interest
• Ascendis Pharma (ASND), 267% surge in interest
• Mirium Pharmaceuticals (MIRM), 178% surge in interest
• Abeona Therapeutics (ABEO), 88% surge in interest
• Adaptimmune (ADAP), 56% surge in interest

Pipeline and key clinical candidates for these companies:

Revance Therapeutics is a biotechnology company whose aesthetics portfolio includes Daxxify for injection, the RHA Collection of dermal fillers, and OPUL, the “first-of-its-kind Relational Commerce platform for aesthetic practices.” Revance has also partnered with Viatris to develop a biosimilar to Botox, which will compete in the existing short-acting neuromodulator marketplace. Revance’s therapeutics pipeline is currently focused on muscle movement disorders including evaluating Daxxify in two debilitating conditions, cervical dystonia and upper limb spasticity.

Trevena is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative medicines for patients with CNS disorders. The company has one approved product in the United States, OLINVYK injection, indicated in adults for the management of acute pain severe enough to require an intravenous opioid analgesic and for whom alternative treatments are inadequate. The company’s novel pipeline is based on Nobel Prize winning research and includes three differentiated investigational drug candidates: TRV045 for diabetic neuropathic pain and epilepsy, TRV250 for the acute treatment of migraine and TRV734 for maintenance treatment of opioid use disorder.

Ascendis Pharma is applying its platform technology to “build a leading, fully integrated, global biopharmaceutical company focused on making a meaningful difference in patients’ lives,” the company states. The company uses its TransCon technologies to “create new and potentially best-in-class therapies,” Ascendis says.

Mirum Pharmaceuticals is focused on the treatment of rare liver diseases. Mirum’s approved medication is Livmarli , or maralixibat oral solution, which is approved in the U.S. for the treatment of cholestatic pruritus in patients with Alagille syndrome one year of age and older. In Europe, the European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has issued a positive opinion for Livmarli for the treatment of cholestatic pruritus in patients with Alagille syndrome two months of age and older. A decision by the European Commission is expected by year-end 2022. Mirum’s late-stage pipeline includes two investigational treatments for debilitating liver diseases affecting children and adults.

Abeona Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing cell and gene therapies for serious diseases. Abeona’s lead clinical program is pz-cel, its investigational autologous, COL7A1 gene-corrected epidermal sheets currently in development for recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa. The company’s development portfolio also features AAV-based gene therapies for ophthalmic diseases with high unmet medical need. Abeona’s novel, next-generation AAV capsids are being evaluated to improve tropism profiles for a variety of devastating diseases. Abeona’s fully integrated cell and gene therapy cGMP manufacturing facility produced pz-cel for the pivotal Phase 3 VIITAL study and is capable of clinical and potential commercial production of AAV-based gene therapies.

Adaptimmune says the company’s “drive is to redefine the treatment of some of the most challenging-to-treat solid tumors.” The company’s proprietary cell therapy platform engineers a patient’s own cells to fight cancer. The company’s robust pipeline of cell therapies has the potential to significantly improve the patient’s treatment experience.

Recent news on these stocks:

August 13

Abeona Therapeutics announced that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, has granted a product-specific procedure code ICD-10-PCS for prademagene zamikeracel (pz-cel), Abeona’s investigational autologous cell-based gene therapy currently in development for recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa, RDEB. If pz-cel receives U.S. marketing approval, this code will allow for efficient and accurate documentation, billing, and analysis of inpatient hospital procedures using pz-cel. The code will go into effect on October 1, 2024.

August 12

Crown Laboratories and Revance Therapeutics announced that they have entered into a merger agreement pursuant to which the companies seek to merge the two complementary organizations. Under the terms of the agreement, which has been unanimously approved by Revance’s board, Crown will commence a tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of Revance’s common stock for $6.66 per share in cash, representing a total enterprise value of $924M. The purchase price represents a premium of 89% over Revance’s closing market price on August 9 and a 111% premium to Revance’s 60-day volume-weighted average price. Upon completion of the transaction, Crown Laboratories expects to be one of the leading global aesthetics and skincare companies in an attractive, high-growth market, with an industry-leading portfolio of 10+ cutting-edge skin health and aesthetic brands, and one of the largest distribution footprints in skincare across medical, retail and e-commerce channels. The transaction is expected to close by year end. Following completion of the merger, Revance will be wholly owned by Crown and Revance’s stock will no longer be publicly traded on Nasdaq. The transaction is subject to stockholders validly tendering shares representing at least a majority of the voting power of Revance, required regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

Ascendis Pharma announced that the FDA has approved YORVIPATH for the treatment of hypoparathyroidism in adults. YORVIPATH is a prodrug of parathyroid hormone, administered once daily, designed to provide continuous exposure to released PTH over the 24-hour dosing period. Hypoparathyroidism is a rare endocrine disease caused by insufficient levels of parathyroid hormone that impact multiple organs and affects an estimated 70,000 to 90,000 people in the United States.

August 8

Trevena announced that it will effect a reverse stock split of its common stock at a ratio of 1-for-25. The reverse stock split will become effective on Tuesday, August 13. Trevena’s common stock will continue to be traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “TRVN” and will begin trading on a split-adjusted basis when the market opens on Tuesday, August 13. The reverse stock split is intended to enable Trevena to regain compliance with the $1.00 minimum bid price required for continued listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market.

Cantor Fitzgerald raised the firm’s price target on Mirum Pharmaceuticals to $60 from $50 and kept an Overweight rating on the shares. Mirum reported Q2 earnings results with a slight top-line beat for both Livmarli and total revenue, the analyst told investors in a research note. The company announced a new Livmarli basket trial addressing a group of ultra-rare pruritic cholestatic diseases, which the company conservatively estimates affects more than 500 patients in the U.S., Cantor added.

Baird raised the firm’s price target on Mirum Pharmaceuticals to $44 from $39 and kept an Outperform rating on the shares. The firm said Q2 results were broadly in line with expectations as livmarli performed as expected, and noted that management reaffirmed net product sales guidance for the year.

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About “Biotech Alert”

The Fly will report on a selection of biotech stocks seeing a surge in interest from retail and financial professional investors, based on data from InvestingChannel.

This Fly exclusive recap reveals the biotech stocks that are seeing a spike in searches among the 20-plus million retail and financial professional investors through InvestingChannel’s online financial news media ecosystem.

This increased attention from the investors may be in response to, or advance of, outsized moves for stocks in the biotech sector, which tend to be volatile and prone to sharp swings in share price around binary events such as clinical study results and FDA approvals.