Precious Metals

[gfp927z]

>>> Celldex: not a one-trick pony


http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/06/29/these-3-biotechs-are-down-more-than-36-this-year-a.aspx?source=yahoo-2&utm_campaign=article&utm_medium=feed&utm_source=yahoo-2



Wall Street hammered Celldex stock in March after its first phase 3 candidate, Rintega, for treatment of brain cancer, failed to outperform a group receiving the standard of care. The good news is, Celldex has more clinical-stage candidates that look very promising.

In the lead is glembatumumab vedotin, or glemba. This is a double-sided drug with a protein on one side, and an extremely powerful dose of chemotherapy on the other. The protein side seeks out gpNMB, found on the surface of a variety of cancer cells. Once it binds to gpNMB, it's carried inside, and like a Trojan horse, it releases its chemo bomb.

Glemba is in a trial that could support an application to treat the large but underserved triple-negative breast-cancer population (about 170,000 patients worldwide) with tumors that over-express gpNMB. In a previous, smaller trial, it beat the pants off investigators' choice of existing therapies in this group, with a 130% improvement in progression-free survival and a 82% improvement in overall survival.

Celldex is also light on debt and heavy on cash, with an enterprise value of about $186 million. If glemba even comes close to repeating its previous success in the ongoing pivotal trial, which will probably have results next year, it could send this stock through the roof.


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