CureVac Posts Positive Early Data For Its Covid-19 Vaccine Candidate
11/02/2020
Recent hot IPO CureVac (CVAC) on Monday posted positive preliminary data on a Phase 1 clinical trial for its Covid-19 candidate. CVAC stock seesawed on the news, closing down.
The German company is a pioneer in messenger RNA technology. It is among a number of companies working on mRNA Covid-19 vaccine candidates. The gene-based vaccines are designed to direct the body's cells to create a protein similar to the spike protein found in SARS-CoV-2, triggering the body's natural immune response. Covid-19 is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
On Monday, CureVac said its Phase 1 tests showed the vaccine was generally well tolerated and induced strong neutralizing antibody responses. The company said it plans a detailed overview of the trial results and publication in a scientific journal in the coming weeks.
In the Phase 1 study, more than 250 healthy adults ages 18 to 60 received two vaccinations 29 days apart. This included as many as 10 who had previously tested positive for Covid-19.
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Meanwhile, the company said it's on track to start a pivotal Phase 2b/3 trial before year-end.
The two leaders in the race for a Covid-19 vaccine also use mRNA technology. They are Germany's BioNTech (BNTX), in partnership with Pfizer (PFE), and Moderna (MRNA).
CVAC Stock: CureVac CEO 'Very Encouraged'
BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna both recently said they had completed or nearly completed enrollment in their respective 44,000- and 30,000-participant Phase 3 clinical trials. Both have said they could seek emergency approval this year, assuming the tests go well. They likely are the only two vaccines that have a chance for emergency approval this year, observers say.
Two other mRNA pioneers, Translate Bio (TBIO) and Arcturus Therapeutics (ARCT), also are working on Covid-19 vaccine candidates. Translate Bio has teamed with Sanofi (SNY). Those efforts, too, are further behind the leaders.
Last month, Sanofi and Translate Bio posted positive pre-clinical trial results for their vaccine candidate and said Phase 1/2 clinical trials would start this month.
For its part, CureVac is amid a Phase 2a clinical trial for a Covid-19 vaccine in Peru and Panama. "We are very encouraged by the interim Phase 1 data," CureVac Chief Executive Franz-Werner Haas said in a news release.
CVAC Stock Soared Fivefold First Two Days On Market
On the stock market today, CVAC stock rose as much as 4.6% early on the news. But later in the session, shares reversed and fell as much as 4.7%. At the close, CVAC stock fell 3.5% to 47.08.
CureVac made its U.S. initial public offering on Aug. 14. The company priced CVAC stock at 16 but shares closed at 44 that day. The next day, it touched a record high of 85.
Since that initial burst, CVAC stock generally has trended lower. In late September, it touched 43, its lowest price since its first trading day.
Still, CVAC stock carries an Accumulation/Distribution Rating of A+, which indicates heavy institutional buying.