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: 

• Biohaven Pharmaceutical (BHVN), 165% surge in interest
• Cara Therapeutics (CARA), 145% surge in interest
• Compugen (CGEN), 131% surge in interest
• Savara (SVRA), 116% surge in interest
• Tracon Pharma (TCON), 116% surge in interest

Pipeline and key clinical candidates for these companies:

Biohaven is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development, and commercialization of treatments in key therapeutic areas, including immunology, neuroscience, and oncology. Biohaven’s clinical and preclinical programs include Kv7 ion channel modulation for epilepsy and mood disorders; extracellular protein degradation for immunological diseases; TRPM3 antagonism for migraine and neuropathic pain; TYK2/JAK1 inhibition for neuroinflammatory disorders; glutamate modulation for OCD and SCA; myostatin inhibition for neuromuscular and metabolic diseases, including SMA and obesity; and antibody recruiting, bispecific molecules and antibody drug conjugates for cancer.

Cara Therapeutics is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company leading a new treatment paradigm to improve the lives of patients suffering from pruritus. The company’s KORSUVA injection is the first and only FDA-approved treatment for moderate-to-severe pruritus associated with chronic kidney disease in adults undergoing hemodialysis. The company is developing an oral formulation of difelikefalin and has an ongoing Phase 2/3 clinical program for patients with notalgia paresthetica, a neuropathic disorder characterized by chronic pruritus of the upper back for which there are no FDA-approved therapies.

Compugen is a clinical-stage drug discovery and development company utilizing a broadly applicable, predictive computational discovery platform to identify novel drug targets and new biological pathways and develop therapeutics in the field of cancer immunotherapy. Recognizing the potential of immuno-oncology to shift the cancer treatment landscape, the company chose to focus on the discovery of new drug targets to extend the reach of cancer immunotherapies to new patient populations.

Savara is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on rare respiratory diseases. Its lead program, molgramostim nebulizer solution, is an inhaled granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor in Phase 3 development for autoimmune pulmonary alveolar proteinosis.

Tracon is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company utilizing a cost-efficient, CRO-independent, product development platform to advance its pipeline of novel targeted cancer therapeutics and to partner with other life science companies. The company’s clinical-stage pipeline includes Envafolimab, a PD-L1 single-domain antibody given by rapid subcutaneous injection that is being studied in the pivotal ENVASARC trial for sarcoma; YH001, a potential best-in-class CTLA-4 antibody in Phase 1 development; and TRC102, a Phase 2 small molecule drug candidate for the treatment of lung cancer.

Recent news on these stocks:

March 6th

H.C. Wainwright lowered the firm’s price target on Tracon Pharmaceuticals to $6 from $7, while keeping a Buy rating on the shares following the Q4 report. The firm cited dilution from the increased share count for the target drop.

Canaccord lowered the firm’s price target on Cara Therapeutics to $10 from $11, but kept a Buy rating on the shares. The firm said at current levels, given the solidity of the Phase 2 data, it continues to believe the stock is significantly undervalued and is a buyer of the shares into the Q3 readout.

March 5th

Compugen reported Q4 EPS of 11c and revenue of $33.5M, with consensus at 22c and $20M, respectively. Compugen said it expects that its cash and cash-related balances will be sufficient to fund its operating plans into 2027. The company has no debt.

Tracon Pharmaceuticals reported Q4 EPS of 1c and revenue of $3M, with consensus at (8c) and $1M, respectively. Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash were $8.6M on December 31, 2023. License revenue for the fourth quarter of 2023 was $3.0M and was due to the license of our PDP to a clinical-stage biotech company.

“We are on track to complete enrollment of 80 patients treated with single-agent envafolimab in the ongoing pivotal ENVASARC trial later this quarter. We expect to report updated response rate data shortly thereafter and before the end of this quarter, with final data anticipated in the second half of 2024,” said Charles Theuer, Tracon’s Chief Executive Officer.

“We also expect to leverage our Product Development Platform to generate non-dilutive capital through either an additional license or by replacing a CRO and executing clinical trials for partners at a lower cost compared to a CRO but still at a premium to our costs using a pay for performance model.”

March 4th

Cara Therapeutics reported Q4 losses per share (59c) and revenue of $3M, with consensus at (41c) and $9.42M, respectively. “Earlier this year, we announced the decision to focus all our resources on our late-stage notalgia paresthetica clinical program, which we believe puts us on the path to significant near-term value creation,” said Christopher Posner, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cara Therapeutics.

“We completed enrollment in KOURAGE 1 Part A, the dose-finding portion of our pivotal program, earlier than anticipated and now expect to report topline efficacy and safety results in the third quarter of 2024. With a sizeable patient population and no approved or effective therapies on the market, we are excited about the commercial potential for oral difelikefalin in NP. Importantly, our cash runway into 2026 gives us the resources necessary to reach all potential key value-inflection milestones in our NP clinical program.”

“Cara expects that our current unrestricted cash and cash equivalents and available-for-sale marketable securities will be sufficient to fund our currently anticipated operating plan into 2026. Our current operating plan reflects the impact of our prioritization announcement in January 2024 which includes costs related to our pivotal program in NP.”

Piper Sandler raised the firm’s price target on Savara  to $16 from $7 and kept an Overweight rating on the shares. Savara is up more than 100% in the last 12 months, and the firm believes the stock can continue to head higher into the de-risked IMPALA-2 readout end of Q2. This would be similar to CymaBay (CBAY), which traded up about 80%+ from enrollment completion in pivotal Phase 3 RESPONSE, to topline data in August for which the Street carried a high probability of success, Piper says. Furthermore, the stock traded up from the data into the NDA submission and thereafter. The firm thinks Savara has not reached its plateau and can continue the momentum into the data.

H.C. Wainwright raised the firm’s price target on Biohaven to $63 from $50 and kept a Buy rating on the shares post the Q4 results. The firm said Biohaven’s diverse portfolio is progressing through multiple indications, but it is focused on its epilepsy, metabolic and IgG degrader platforms. Wainwright believes near-term value-creating inflection catalysts for the company warrant investor attention.

March 1st

TD Cowen raised the firm’s price target on Biohaven to $55 from $35, while keeping an Outperform rating on the shares. The firm said its BHV-1300 SAD/IgG depletion and initial clinical data are expected by March/April and it believes that shares could double on very positive data.

February 29th

Biohaven reported Q4 non-GAAP losses per share of ($1.61), with consensus at ($1.41). CEO Vlad Coric commented, “We embarked on a bold execution plan after completing our spin-off, re-emerging as a separate entity focused on immunology, neuroscience, and oncology…Today we are focused on delivering outcomes across five platforms spanning inflammation and immunology, ion channel modulation, myostatin inhibition, glutamate modulation, and oncology. In the year ahead, we expect to deliver potentially groundbreaking data across three distinct programs.

“In the near-term, we expect to report first-in-human Phase 1 IgG lowering data with our pan-IgG degrader, BHV-1300, with broad potential application…We also plan to report OCD Phase 3 topline data in the second quarter of 2024 from an interim analysis with our glutamate modulating agent, troriluzole… And finally, we’re expecting Phase 3 topline data in the second half of the year with our anti-myostatin compound, taldefgrobep alfa, for patients with SMA. Beyond data expectations, we are excited with the progress made across the balance of our portfolio, starting with our Kv7 ion channel activation program.

“Excitement is also mounting for the potential of taldefgrobep alfa in weight loss, a compound that we believe will maintain and grow muscle mass as a means of helping to address the global obesity crisis… We are passionate about helping patients in need, and excited about our portfolio, the skilled drug development team we have in place, and the vast opportunity in the year ahead.”

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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.