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Shares of AC Immune ACIU have lost 18.3% in the past month compared with the industry’s decline of 1.3%. The stock has underperformed the sector and the S&P 500 Index during this timeframe.
Earlier in the month, ACIU reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter. Nonetheless, shares of this Switzerland-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company continue to slide down.
Let’s delve deeper and analyze the company’s strengths and weaknesses to understand how to play the stock in such a scenario.
ACIU Underperforms Industry, Sector and S&P 500 Index
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
AC Immune’s Innovative Pipeline
AC Immune is utilizing its dual proprietary technology platforms, SupraAntigen and Morphomer, to develop drugs spanning multiple treatment modalities and targeting both established and emerging neurodegenerative pathologies. At present, ACIU is advancing therapeutic and diagnostic programs targeting five different types of misfolded pathological proteins related to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD) and other neurodegenerative disorders.
ACI-24.060 is AC Immune’s anti-Abeta active immunotherapy being evaluated in patients with AD and in subjects with Down Syndrome (DS). ACI24.060 is currently being tested at three different incremental doses in the phase Ib/II ABATE study (NCT05462106), and amyloid plaque reduction is being assessed using Abeta-PET imaging. The candidate has been granted Fast Track designation for the treatment of AD in the United States.
ACI-7104.056, an active immunotherapy targeting pathological a-syn, is currently being tested in the phase II study (VacSYn) in the EU and the UK.
ACI-35.030/JNJ-2056 is being evaluated in subjects with preclinical (i.e., pre-symptomatic) AD in the phase IIb study ReTain.
Apart from these, the pipeline includes P2620, a Tau-PET imaging agent discovered in collaboration with Life Molecular Imaging (late-stage clinical development in AD), ACI-15196 for PD (a phase I study will be initiated shortly), and others.
The market for neurodegenerative diseases like AD and PD is expected to grow significantly.
Collaborations Provide Funding to ACIU
ACIU has entered into strategic collaborations with pharma giants to advance its pipeline. In 2024, AC Immune entered into an exclusive option and license agreement with Takeda TAK for its active immunotherapies targeting Abeta, including ACI-24.060 for AD. AC Immune received an upfront payment of $100 million and is eligible to receive total potential payments of up to approximately $2.1 billion.