Mergers and acquisitions grabbed the spotlight in the biotech sector once again this week after Bristol Myers Squibb BMY agreed to acquire 2seventy bio, Inc TSVT. Meanwhile, other pipeline and regulatory updates were in focus.
Recap of the Week’s Most Important Stories:
TSVT Stock Up on BMY Deal for $286M
Shares of 2seventy bio gained after it announced a definitive merger agreement with partner BMY.
Per the terms of the deal, BMY will acquire all of the outstanding shares of 2seventy bio for $5.00 per share in an all-cash transaction for a total equity value of approximately $286 million, or $102 million net of estimated cash. The offer represented an 88% premium to TSVT’s closing price of $2.66 on March 7, 2025.
BMY and TSVT have an agreement in place, whereby both companies equally share profits and losses related to the development manufacturing and commercialization of Abecma in the United States. 2seventy bio’s board of directors has unanimously recommended that stockholders tender their shares in the offer commenced by BMY.
TSVT has been facing challenges for quite some time now and was looking to maximize shareholder value. The acquisition is expected to be closed in the second quarter of 2025.
GILD’s Data on Lenacapavir, Biktarvy
Gilead Sciences, Inc. GILD announced positive data from its ongoing phase I study evaluating pipeline candidate lenacapavir, a novel, once-yearly injectable HIV-1 capsid inhibitor, for the investigational use of HIV prevention as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
Gilead presented data on two novel, once-yearly formulations of lenacapavir for PrEP during an oral abstract session at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI 2025).
The data from the phase I study showed that the two different formulations of once-yearly lenacapavir (administered via intramuscular injection) achieved and maintained plasma concentrations exceeding those associated with HIV prevention efficacy observed in the late-stage PURPOSE 1 and PURPOSE 2 studies.
Gilead plans to launch a phase III study on once-yearly lenacapavir for PrEP in the second half of 2025.
GILD also presented data from the PURPOSE 1 study at the CROI 2025 that showed a preference for twice-yearly lenacapavir compared with once-daily orals.
Gilead also presented data on ALLIANCE from an ongoing phase III study on Biktarvy. This study is evaluating Biktarvy compared with dolutegravir 50 mg (DTG) + emtricitabine 200 mg/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate 300 mg, F/TDF, DTG+F/TDF, in adults with HIV-1/HBV co-infection initiating treatment. Data showed that Biktarvy maintained high rates of HIV-1 and HBV virologic suppression.
PTGX Stock Up on Ulcerative Colitis Study Data
Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. PTGX announced positive top-line data from the phase IIb ANTHEM-UC study, which evaluated icotrokinra (JNJ-2113), an investigational targeted oral peptide that selectively blocks the IL-23 receptor, for treating adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis (UC), a chronic disease of the large intestine.
The ANTHEM-UC study, conducted by Protagonist's partner, Johnson & Johnson, met its primary endpoint of clinical response in all icotrokinra dose groups. Shares surged following the announcement.
Treatment with icotrokinra also demonstrated clinically meaningful differences in key secondary endpoints of clinical remission, symptomatic remission and endoscopic improvement at week 12 compared with placebo in the ANTHEM-UC study. Treatment with icotrokinra was generally safe and well-tolerated.
Protagonist announced new data from the phase III ICONIC-LEAD study and phase III ICONIC-ADVANCE 1&2 studies on icotrokinra for treating moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis (PsO).
Data from the phase III ICONIC-LEAD study showed that almost half of the patients with moderate-to-severe PsO who were treated with icotrokinra achieved completely clear skin at week 24. Data from the phase III ICONIC-ADVANCE 1&2 studies, which evaluated icotrokinra compared with psoriasis drug Sotyktu (deucravacitinib), met the co-primary endpoints, with icotrokinra proving its superiority to Sotyktu.
ARVN Stock Plummets on Study Data
Shares of Arvinas ARVN plummeted earlier this week after the company and partner Pfizer announced mixed results from a late-stage breast cancer study of its lead candidate, vepdegestrant.
Vepdegestrant is being developed in the phase III VERITAC-2 study as a monotherapy in adult patients with estrogen receptor-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor two-negative (ER+/HER2-) advanced or metastatic breast cancer (MBC) compared with fulvestrant. The patient population includes those whose disease progressed following prior treatment with CDK 4/6 inhibitors and endocrine therapy.
The study achieved its primary endpoint in the estrogen receptor one-mutant (ESR1m) patient population. It showed a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in progression-free survival upon treatment with vepdegestrant compared with Faslodex. The results also surpassed the pre-specified target hazard ratio of 0.60 for the ESR1m population.
However, the study did not demonstrate a statistically significant improvement in PFS for the intent-to-treat population, which included all patients who received the candidate, regardless of whether they adhered to or finished treatment. This outcome disappointed the investors and shares of both ARVN and Pfizer took a beating.
Arvinas currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Performance
The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index has lost 1.72% in the past five trading sessions and INCY’s shares lost 2.98%. In the past six months, shares of MRNA have plunged 49.76%. (See the last biotech stock roundup here: Biotech Stock Roundup: CMRX Up on JAZZ Bid, MRNA Up on Updates & More)
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What's Next in Biotech?
Stay tuned for more pipeline updates.
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