IBT backed Regeneron teams up with Bluebird on T cell cancer therapies US top tier biotech Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: REGN) is to make a $100m equity investment at a 59% premium in the gene therapy pioneer Bluebird Bio, as part of a newly established collaboration to develop and commercialise novel immune cell therapies for cancer. Regeneron is […]
Tekla Healthcare top specialist fund performer in July Tekla Healthcare Opportunities, a US closed end fund that invests largely in US large cap pharma and biotech, saw the best investment performance of the 14 specialist biotech specialist investors monitored by Marten & Co, in terms of its sterling-adjusted NAV performance for the month of July. Switzerland’s BB […]
Trust favourite Neurocrine’s shares rise on strong Ingrezza report Neurocrine Biosciences (Nasdaq: NBIX), the US biotech that is the largest single holding for International Biotechnology Trust (IBT, 5.5% of NAV) and second largest for BB Biotech (BBB.S, 8.9% of NAV), has seen its share rise by more than 15% this week on the back of a strong […]
FDA approves BB Biotech backed Agios’ AML drug Tibsovo Agios Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AGIO), a top 10 holding for Switzerland’s BB Biotech (BBB), has received US FDA approval for Tibsovo for relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia (r/r AML) with a specific IDH1 mutation. Agios, which has seen its shares rise by ~50% this year, accounted for […]
Genmab commits to new bispecific cancer immunotherapy programme Danish biotech Genmab (Nasdaq Copenhagen: GEN) has paid $54m upfront and committed to pay up to $1.65bn in R&D, regulatory and commercial milestones to the private German biotech Immatics as part of a deal to discover and develop three next-generation bispecific cancer immunotherapies. Genmab, which is Europe’s […]
EC approves Ionis’ amyloidosis drug Ionis Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: IONS) has received marketing authorisation from the European Commission for Tegsedi (inotersen), its RNA-targeted therapeutic for stage 1 or 2 polyneuropathy in adults with hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis (hATTR). This is the first approval for the drug and unusually EU approval has come through ahead of the US, with the outcome of […]
Celgene claims win for luspatercept in Believe trial Specialist trust favourite Celgene (Nasdaq: CELG) has reported positive result in a Phase III trial with the drug candidate luspatercept for treatment of anaemia associated with beta-thalassemia. This follows the company’s success in the Medalist Phase III trial win with the same drug in anaemia associated with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). The unambiguous […]
Autolus IPO boosts WPCT to top of specialist trust league in June The Nasdaq float of Autolus, one its top ten investee companies, boosted Woodford Patient Capital Trust (WPCT) to top position in the performance league table of biotech/healthcare specialist investment trusts for the month of June, both in terms of price and NAV total return. […]
Trust favourite Celgene claims win in Medalist trial US biotech and specialist trust favourite Celgene (Nasdaq: CELG) has reported a positive result in a closely-watched Phase III trial that was being seen as a key step necessary in its rehabilitation with investors. The trial was of the drug candidate luspatercept for treatment of anaemia associated with a type […]
Key regulatory updates biotech specialist trust investees Two stocks that core holdings for biotech specialist trusts have reported important regulatory updates in the past week, with several other companies approaching key events, as detailed below. Array BioPharma (Nasdaq: ARRY), a top ten holding for International Biotechnology Trust (IBT), received FDA approval for Braftovi in combination with Mektovi […]
