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:

• Immutep (IMMP), 2,393% surge in interest
• Alterity Therapeutics (ATHE), 1,144% surge in interest
• NuCana (NCNA), 984% surge in interest
• Quince Therapeutics (QNCX), 869% surge in interest
• BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (BCRX), 851% surge in interest
• PTC Therapeutics (PTCT), 780% surge in interest
• SciSparc (SPRC), 518% surge in interest
• MiMedx Group (MDXG), 296% surge in interest
• ImmunityBio (IBRX), 117% surge in interest
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX), 106% surge in interest

Pipeline and key clinical candidates for these companies:

Immutep is a late-stage biotechnology company developing novel immunotherapies for cancer and autoimmune disease. The company is a pioneer in the understanding and advancement of therapeutics related to Lymphocyte Activation Gene-3, and its diversified product portfolio harnesses LAG-3’s ability to stimulate or suppress the immune response. Immutep is dedicated to leveraging its expertise to bring innovative treatment options to patients in need and to maximise value for shareholders.

Alterity Therapeutics is a clinical stage biotechnology company dedicated to creating an alternate future for people living with neurodegenerative diseases. The company is initially focused on developing disease modifying therapies in Parkinson’s disease and related disorders. Alterity recently reported positive data for its lead asset, ATH434, in a Phase 2 clinical trial in participants with Multiple System Atrophy, a rare and rapidly progressive Parkinsonian disorder. ATH434 is also being evaluated in a Phase 2 clinical trial in advanced MSA. In addition, Alterity has a broad drug discovery platform generating patentable chemical compounds to treat the underlying pathology of neurological diseases.

NuCana is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on significantly improving treatment outcomes for patients with cancer by applying its ProTide technology to transform some of the most widely prescribed chemotherapy agents, nucleoside analogs, into more effective and safer medicines.

Quince Therapeutics is a late-stage biotechnology company dedicated to unlocking the power of a patient’s own biology for the treatment of rare diseases.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals discovers novel, oral, small-molecule medicines that treat rare diseases in which significant unmet medical needs exist and an enzyme plays a key role in the biological pathway of the disease. Oral, once-daily Orladeyo is approved in the United States and many global markets. BioCryst has active programs to develop oral medicines for multiple targets across the complement system, including BCX10013, an oral Factor D inhibitor in clinical development. Rapivab is approved in the U.S. and multiple global markets, with post-marketing commitments ongoing.

PTC Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company that says it is “focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of clinically differentiated medicines that provide benefits to patients with rare disorders.” The company adds: “PTC’s ability to innovate to identify new therapies and to globally commercialize products is the foundation that drives investment in a robust and diversified pipeline of transformative medicines. PTC’s mission is to provide access to best-in-class treatments for patients who have little to no treatment options.”

SciSparc is a specialty clinical-stage pharmaceutical company led by an experienced team of senior executives and scientists. SciSparc’s focus is on creating and enhancing a portfolio of technologies and assets based on cannabinoid pharmaceuticals. With this focus, the Company is currently engaged in the following drug development programs based on THC and/or non-psychoactive CBD: SCI-110 for the treatment of Tourette Syndrome, for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and agitation; SCI-160 for the treatment of pain; and SCI-210 for the treatment of ASD and status epilepticus.

MiMedx says it is “dedicated to providing a leading portfolio of products for applications in the wound care, burn, and surgical sectors of healthcare. The Company’s vision is to be the leading global provider of healing solutions through relentless innovation to restore quality of life.”

ImmunityBio is a vertically integrated biotechnology company developing next-generation therapies and vaccines that bolster the natural immune system to defeat cancers and infectious diseases. The Company’s range of immunotherapy and cell therapy platforms, alone and together, act to drive and sustain an immune response with the goal of creating durable and safe protection against disease. Designated an FDA Breakthrough Therapy, ANKTIVA is the first FDA-approved immunotherapy for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer CIS that activates natural killer cells, T cells, and memory T cells for a long-duration response. The Company is applying its science and platforms to treating cancers, including the development of potential cancer vaccines, as well as developing immunotherapies and cell therapies that we believe sharply reduce or eliminate the need for standard high-dose chemotherapy. These platforms and their associated product candidates are designed to be more effective, accessible, and easily administered than current standards of care in oncology and infectious diseases.

Vertex is a global biotechnology company that invests in scientific innovation to create transformative medicines for people with serious diseases. The company has multiple approved medicines that treat the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis and has several ongoing clinical and research programs in CF. Beyond CF, Vertex has a “robust clinical pipeline of investigational therapies across a range of modalities in other serious diseases where it has deep insight into causal human biology,” including sickle cell disease, beta thalassemia, APOL1-mediated kidney disease, acute and neuropathic pain, type 1 diabetes and alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, the company states.

Recent news on these stocks:

May 5

Immutep announces an excellent median Overall Survival, OS, of 17.6 months has been achieved in Cohort B of the TACTI-003 Phase IIb trial. This part of the Phase II study evaluates eftilagimod alfa in combination with MSD’s (MRK) anti-PD-1 therapy KEYTRUDA as first line therapy in recurrent/metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients with PD-L1 expression below 1. The mature 17.6-months median OS in evaluable patients with a data cut-off of 31 March 2025 compares favourably to historical results from the two current standard-of-care approaches for 1L HNSCC patients with CPS less than1 including 10.7-months from cetuximab + chemotherapy and 11.3-months from anti-PD-1 therapy + chemotherapy, as well as 7.9-months from anti-PD-1 monotherapy. Patients with CPS less than1 in 1L HNSCC represent a treatment population with high unmet medical need. Up to 20% of 1L HNSCC patients have CPS less than1 and despite immunotherapy’s progress in fighting cancer, anti-PD-1 therapy alone is only approved for patients who express PD-L1. Additionally, all available treatment options for patients with PD-L1 CPS less than1 include chemotherapy.

Alterity Therapeutics announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, has granted Fast Track designation for ATH434 for the treatment of Multiple System Atrophy, MSA. This designation is intended to accelerate the development and review of novel investigational products such as ATH434 and recognizes its potential as an innovative approach to address the high unmet need for treating MSA, a disease with no approved therapy. “Receiving the FDA’s Fast Track Designation for ATH434, alongside the Orphan Drug Designation we have already received, underscores the promise of this novel agent to address the urgent need for a disease modifying therapy for individuals with MSA,” said, David Stamler, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Alterity. “This designation reinforces the potential of ATH434 as demonstrated by recent scientific findings related to its mechanism of action and the robust and clinically meaningful efficacy from our double-blind Phase 2 clinical trial. Importantly, the Fast Track designation provides us the opportunity to interact with the FDA more frequently on the advancement of ATH434, potentially accelerating its development path and approval. We look forward to leveraging the Fast Track designation to bring this promising treatment to patients as quickly as possible.”

BioCryst reported upbeat Q1 earnings and revenue and increased its outlook for FY25 ORLADEYO revenue. “We started 2025 with another quarter of outstanding performance. ORLADEYO revenue growth was driven by moving ORLADEYO patients from free drug to paid at a much faster rate than we expected, resulting in a substantial increase to our annual guidance as we also move closer to peak sales of $1 billion. This increased financial strength accelerates our path to profitability and enables us to start paying down our debt, while continuing to invest in and advance our pipeline,” said Jon Stonehouse, president and chief executive officer of BioCryst.

PTC Therapeutics reported a sharp year-over-year increase in Q1 earnings per share and revenue, with the company noting that total revenue also includes royalty, collaboration and license, and manufacturing revenue of $1.022.7B, compared to $32.5M last year. “Following a year of outstanding execution across every part of the Company, we have built on this positive momentum with solid revenue performance in the first quarter, allowing us to narrow our full-year revenue guidance,” said Matthew B. Klein, CEO. “Our strong cash balance supports all of our planned commercial and R&D activities and provides the ability to reach cashflow breakeven without raising additional capital. The positive CHMP opinion for Sephience kickstarts our anticipated global launch for what we see as a significant revenue opportunity.”

ImmunityBio announced that the company received a Refusal to File letter from the U.S. FDA for the supplemental biologics license application for use of ANKTIVA plus Bacillus Calmette-Guerin in BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer for the indication of papillary disease. This RTF letter was received despite reaching unanimous guidance and encouragement at the in-person January 2025 meeting from the leadership of the Agency, including from CBER, CDER and OCE to submit this sBLA. At this meeting all key decision makers were specifically asked and unanimously confirmed that ImmunityBio should submit the sBLA as soon as possible based on the data in the single-arm trial. Relying on this unanimous guidance the company submitted the sBLA in March 2025. The company has already requested an urgent meeting to resolve the inconsistencies between the directives provided at the January Meeting and receipt of the RTF letter.

Vertex reported lower-than-expected Q1 earnings and revenue and narrowed its FY25 revenue outlook. “Vertex delivered a strong start to 2025 with notable execution across the business as we grow and diversify the revenue base, progress multiple launches and advance the R&D pipeline. We continued to expand our leadership in CF and build global momentum for CASGEVY, and we launched JOURNAVX in moderate-to-severe acute pain,” said Reshma Kewalramani, M.D., Chief Executive Officer and President of Vertex. “With multiple programs in pivotal development including povetacicept, which continues to make rapid progress in achieving its potential as a pipeline-in-a-product, and additional programs in early and mid-stage development, Vertex is poised to continue to deliver value for years to come.”

April 30

MiMedx reported earnings and discussed Medicare local coverage determination delays on its associated call. On the call, CEO Joseph Capper stated, according to a transcript: “As you may know, on the eve of their scheduled implementation of the proposed LCDs, the federal government once again announced a delay this time until January 1, 2026. It goes without saying another delay was a head scratcher as the private office setting is in tremendous need of Medicare reform. This action without any other immediate step to slow down the out of control spend represents another blow to Medicare beneficiaries, the trust fund, and US taxpayers. I am proud of MIMEDX rich history of developing products based on clinical needs and backed by robust peer reviewed evidence which are tenants of any high quality medical technology company. We firmly believe this is the right approach to all aspects of medicine and certainly welcome the reform which would have made basic evidence a requirement to commercialize products in the wound care market. That said, we must adapt to the current environment. Naturally, we had contingency plans in place in the event of another such delay. And we have modified our approach to ensure we remain competitive in these affected care settings as we bridge to a period of reform for which we will continue to actively advocate.” The CEO went on to add: “As part of our contingency planning in the event of further LCD delays, we added a third party manufactured allograft branded Salera to our offering, which contributed to our recent results. We are in discussions to potentially distribute other third party manufactured allografts as well. I expect these products to be helpful in retaining business. However, I would caution against expecting this pivot in our approach to create a windfall for MiMedx for a few reasons. First, only approximately 25% of our overall business has ASP exposure. Second, while priced higher than our current EPI brands, they remain well below the eye-popping prices of some of the newer products or recently re-priced products on the market. Third, MiMedx will not engage in the aggressive selling practices that have become more common and which we believe crossed the line of appropriate marketing behavior. I credit our strong management team for being well prepared to pivot and take steps to protect our business. However, make no mistake, we will continue to advocate for much needed reform in this market. It is certainly very frustrating to see our tax dollars wasted.”

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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.