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:

• Galmed Pharmaceuticals (GLMD), 353% surge in interest
• Protagenic Therapeutics (PTIX), 345% surge in interest
• Hepion Pharmaceuticals (HEPA), 310% surge in interest
• Rigel Pharmaceuticals (RIGL), 290% surge in interest
• Bolt Biotherapeutics (BOLT), 274% surge in interest
• Palatin Technologies (PTN), 274% surge in interest
• Krystal Biotech (KRYS), 240% surge in interest
• CorMedix (CRMD), 238% surge in interest
• Bio-Techne Corporatiton (TECH), 214% surge in interest
• Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ), 203% surge in interes

Pipeline and key clinical candidates for these companies:

Galmed is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of Aramchol for liver and fibro-inflammatory diseases. The company has focused almost exclusively on developing Aramchol for the treatment of noncirrhotic nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH, and are currently developing Aramchol for Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis, or PSC, and exploring the feasibility of developing Aramchol for other fibro-inflammatory indications outside of liver disease.

Protagenic Therapeutics is committed to pioneering neuro-active peptides into therapeutics to mitigate stress-related disorders.

Hepion Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company that has been developing a treatment for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and other chronic liver diseases. Hepion’s lead drug candidate, rencofilstat, is a potent inhibitor of cyclophilins, which are involved in many disease processes. Rencofilstat has been shown to reduce liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma tumor burden in experimental disease models and is currently in Phase 2 clinical development for the treatment of NASH.

Rigel Pharmaceuticals is a biotechnology company dedicated to discovering, developing and providing novel therapies that significantly improve the lives of patients with hematologic disorders and cancer.

Bolt Biotherapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer. Bolt Biotherapeutics’ pipeline candidates are built on the company’s deep expertise in myeloid biology and cancer drug development. The company’s pipeline includes BDC-3042, a first-in-class agonist antibody that activates macrophages by targeting dectin-2, and BDC-4182, a next-generation Boltbody Immune-Stimulating Antibody Conjugate clinical candidate targeting claudin 18.2. BDC-3042 is currently in a Phase 1 dose escalation trial that includes patients with any of seven different solid tumor types. BDC-4182 is supported by strong in vitro and in vivo data demonstrating potent anti-tumor activity, and activities are underway to support the initiation of clinical trials in second quarter 2025. Bolt Biotherapeutics is also developing additional Boltbody ISACs in strategic collaborations with leading biopharmaceutical companies.

Palatin is a biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class medicines based on molecules that modulate the activity of the melanocortin receptor systems, with targeted, receptor-specific product candidates for the treatment of diseases with significant unmet medical need and commercial potential. Palatin’s strategy is to develop products and then form marketing collaborations with industry leaders to maximize their commercial potential.

Krystal Biotech is a fully integrated, commercial-stage, global biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of genetic medicines to treat diseases with high unmet medical needs. VYJUVEK, the company’s first commercial product, is the first-ever redosable gene therapy, and the first genetic medicine approved by the FDA and EMA for the treatment of dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa. The company is rapidly advancing a robust preclinical and clinical pipeline of investigational genetic medicines in respiratory, oncology, dermatology, ophthalmology, and aesthetics.

CorMedix is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapeutic products for the prevention and treatment of life-threatening conditions and diseases. The company is focused on commercializing its lead product DefenCath, which was approved by the FDA on November 15, 2023. CorMedix commercially launched DefenCath in inpatient settings in April 2024 and in outpatient settings in July 2024. CorMedix also intends to develop DefenCath as a catheter lock solution for use in other patient populations.

Bio-Techne Corporation is a global life sciences company providing innovative tools and bioactive reagents for the research and clinical diagnostic communities. Bio-Techne products assist scientific investigations into biological processes and the nature and progress of specific diseases. They aid in drug discovery efforts and provide the means for accurate clinical tests and diagnoses. With hundreds of thousands of products in its portfolio, Bio-Techne generated approximately $1.2B in net sales in fiscal 2024 and has approximately 3,100 employees worldwide.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals is a global biopharmaceutical company whose purpose is to innovate to transform the lives of patients and their families. The company is dedicated to developing life-changing medicines for people with serious diseases — often with limited or no therapeutic options. It has a diverse portfolio of marketed medicines, including leading therapies for sleep disorders and epilepsy, and a growing portfolio of cancer treatments.

Recent news on these stocks:

May 9

Palatin Technologies announced new preclinical data on its melanocortin agonists PL9654 and PL9655 at the 2025 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology Annual Meeting. The findings demonstrate the agents’ ability to resolve inflammation, stabilize the blood-retinal barrier, reduce VEGF signaling, and protect retinal ganglion cells, key drivers of vision loss in diabetic retinopathy. Notably, both compounds showed efficacy across multiple models and routes of administration, including topical delivery. Key Findings: Vision preservation: PL9654 and PL9655 maintained contrast vision and showed significant efficacy compared to vehicle. Inflammation control: Gene set enrichment analysis revealed downregulation of immune-related pathways in microglia and Muller glial cells for PL9654 and PL9655 compared to vehicle. Retinal protection: PL9654 reduced ischemia-reperfusion-induced retinal damage (as measured by histological scoring), similar to the melanocortin peptide alpha-MSH. Cell integrity: Microglia and Muller glial cell levels in treated animals mirrored those in healthy controls. Neuroregeneration: Topical PL9655 treatment increased rod photoreceptor levels relative to vehicle. Anti-angiogenesis: PL9654 significantly inhibited choroidal neovascularization and fibrosis. PL9655 topical treatment also showed an increase in rods compared with vehicle.

May 8

Bolt Biotherapeutics will host a key opinion leader conference call and webcast featuring Ecaterina Dumbrava, M.D., associate professor of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and investigator on the Phase 1 dose-escalation clinical study of BDC-3042, on Monday, May 12, 2025 at 2:30 p.m. PT / 5:30 p.m. ET. Dr. Dumbrava will discuss the results from the Phase 1 dose-escalation clinical study of BDC-3042 that were presented at the American Associates for Cancer Research Annual Meeting that took place in April 2025. In addition, Bolt’s management team will discuss BDC-3042 partnering plans, present an update on BDC-4182 clinical development, and provide an update on first quarter 2025 financial results. A live Q&A will follow the prepared remarks.

May 7

Hepion Pharmaceuticals announced that it has entered into a binding letter of intent, LOI, with New Day Diagnostics LLC to in-license diagnostic tests for celiac disease, respiratory multiplex, helicobacter pylori and hepatocellular carcinoma. The celiac, respiratory multiplex and H. pylori tests have CE marks and are eligible to be sold in Europe at the present time. The diagnostic tests covered under the LOI represent a combined addressable market exceeding $15 billion. John Brancaccio, Executive Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer of Hepion expressed his enthusiasm about this licensing opportunity: “The CE marked tests provide Hepion with the ability to generate near term revenues in European Union countries by leveraging the existing distributor network relationships that New Day Diagnostics has established. We are excited by this opportunity and look forward to working with New Day to maximize value.”

Bio-Techne reported better-than-expected adjusted earnings for Q3, though revenue came in below Wall Street estimates. “Despite a dynamic macroenvironment, the Bio-Techne team once again executed at a high level and delivered strong third quarter results,” said Kim Kelderman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bio-Techne. “Our pharma end market continued to improve, especially from our large pharma partners, which led to a solid performance in our cell therapy and protein analysis instrumentation businesses. Our continued focus on profitability resulted in a 34.9% adjusted operating margin, an increase of 190 basis points compared to the prior year period.”

May 6

Galmed Pharmaceuticals announced that the first set of oncology studies has shown that Aramchol enhances the liver / colorectal cancer-approved therapeutic Regorafenib effects in liver and colon cancers in-vitro and in-vivo models. Aramchol interacted with the multi-kinase inhibitors Sorafenib, Regorafenib and Lenvatinib, to kill GI tumor cells, with Regorafenib exhibiting the greatest effect. Aramchol enhanced both flux and autolysosome formation caused by Regorafenib, activating ATM and AMPK and inactivating mTORC1 and mTORC2 pathways. In addition, Regorafenib and Aramchol interacted to suppress tumor growth in hepatoma models without normal tissue toxicities.

Rigel Pharmaceuticals reported upbeat Q1 results and reiterated its FY25 revenue outlook. “Our Q1 results reflect the continued strength of our growing commercial business. This robust year-over-year revenue growth coupled with our continued financial discipline enabled us to generate more than $11 million in net income this quarter. These results uniquely position us to invest in our pipeline, including our ongoing Phase 1b clinical study evaluating R289 in patients with relapsed or refractory lower-risk MDS,” said Raul Rodriguez, Rigel’s president and CEO. “With a strong start to the year, we are focused on continuing our commercial growth, and building and advancing our development pipeline, including sharing data from the dose escalation portion of our R289 study later this year.”

Krystal Biotech reported mixed Q1 results. “We were thrilled to receive VYJUVEK approval in Europe, and with the potential expansion to Japan later in the year, we continue to make tremendous progress on our goal of delivering profound long-term benefit to DEB patients around the world,” said Krish Krishnan, Chairman and CEO of Krystal Biotech. “With today’s announcement of our second clinical-stage ophthalmology program, the near-term initiation of our registrational study in DEB patients with eye lesions, and upcoming molecular readouts for our rare respiratory disease product candidates, KB407 and KB408, we are pushing forward a broad and expanded pipeline which we expect will ultimately demonstrate the power of HSV-1 based gene delivery in the lung, eye, and skin, and – most importantly – deliver meaningful benefit to patients.”

Truist raised the firm’s price target on CorMedix to $20 from $17 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. Following last month’s preliminary results, the solid Q1 print was not a surprise, though it was surprising that management raised its H1 outlook as inventory shuffle at its largest customer subsided, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm added that the growing cash balance, which it expects to double and hit $147M by year-end, is a high-quality problem, and that it sees M&A in the offing.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals reported downbeat Q1 results and cut its FY25 earnings outlook. “In the first quarter of 2025, our focus on commercial execution resulted in total revenues of $898M, led by the strong performance of Xywav and Epidiolex. In addition, our team continues to receive positive feedback from healthcare providers on the launch of Ziihera in its first approved indication of 2L HER2+ BTC. We are affirming our 2025 total revenue guidance range of $4.15B-$4.40B, reflecting our confidence in our commercial portfolio delivering top-line growth this year,” said Bruce Cozadd, chairman and chief executive officer, Jazz Pharmaceuticals. “We continue to make meaningful progress across our pipeline. We are pleased to report that we have submitted a supplemental New Drug Application for Zepzelca for maintenance therapy in first-line extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. In addition, we recently completed the acquisition of Chimerix, adding a near-term commercial opportunity to our late-stage pipeline that addresses a significant unmet need for patients with H3 K27M-mutant diffuse glioma, a rare, high-grade brain tumor that most commonly affects children and young adults. We also advanced multiple trials across our zanidatamab development program and expect top-line data readout from the HERIZON-GEA-01 trial in 1L GEA in the second half of 2025.”

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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.