Tricida (NASDAQ:TCDA) is drawing investors’ attention as insider trading activity continued to rise in its stock in September. According to TipRanks’ data, the insider confidence signal is positive on TCDA stock. Overall, insiders have bought TCDA stock worth 21.2M in the last three months.
What Does Tricida Do?
Tricida is a biopharma company that is focused on the development and commercialization of its drug Veverimer. The investigational drug will treat metabolic acidosis in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).
A Snapshot of Recent Insider Trading Activity at Tricida
According to TipRanks, which offers a comprehensive list of daily insider transactions and SEC filings, Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners (which owns over 10% stake in TCDA) is accumulating TCDA stock. Per the data, Venrock has bought TCDA stock worth approximately $8.52 million so far this month. Further, these trades came as Informative Buy, implying the investors’ increased confidence in the stock.
The graph below shows that Venrock has aggressively acquired shares of TCDA in the last three months. Meanwhile, TCDA stock has gained nearly 22% during this period.
Besides daily insider transactions, TipRanks offers a list of hot stocks with either a Very Positive or Positive insider confidence signal.
What’s Behind the Move?
TCDA didn’t get the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) nod for Veverimer in 2020. However, the company is on course to resubmit the new drug application for Veverimer in Q2 of 2023. Further, the recent transactions indicate that Venrock is optimistic about Veverimer getting FDA’s approval.
During the Q2 conference call, TCDA’s CEO Gerrit Klaerner stated that the company was increasing the primary endpoint events in the final analysis. Klaerner added that he was expecting “285 to 295 subjects with primary endpoint events in the final analysis,” up from its previous estimate of 250 to 270 events.
In response to this, Needham analyst Serge Belanger said, “The higher number of primary endpoint events increases the statistical powering of the VALOR-CKD trial.”
“The VALOR-CKD trial readout represents a make or break event for TCDA since a positive outcome is required to address the FDA’s CRL for Veverimer.” the analyst added.
Bottom Line
The FDA nod for Veverimer could give a significant boost to TCDA stock. Further, two unanimous Buy recommendations from analysts imply they are confident about TCDA’s prospects. TCDA’s average price forecast of $19 means upside potential of 65.8%. Lastly, Tricida scores a nine out of 10 on TipRanks, mirroring its strong potential to outperform market expectations
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