What happened
Shares of Celldex Therapeutics, Inc. (CLDX -0.92%), a clinical-stage biotech developing novel new cancer therapies, rose 11.8% following the company's third-quarter earnings report on Thursday. Progress with several clinical-stage candidates during the three months ended Sept. 30 sets the company up for potential catalysts in the quarters ahead.
So what
Celldex shares have been hammered mercilessly since its lead candidate failed a pivotal study earlier this year. Today, Celldex provided progress updates for a handful of new drug candidates in clinical-stage development, which gives the company at least a few chances to mount a comeback.
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A phase 1 study testing the company's CD40 targeted antibody, CDX-1140, in a variety of solid tumors has completed dosing the first four cohorts and continues to exhibit a desirable safety profile. A phase 2 combination study of CDX-3379 and Erbitux in advanced head and neck cancer has nearly finished enrolling patients, so we should find out if this program has legs before much longer.
Now what
Celldex finished September with $105.6 million in cash and marketable securities after operations lost $7.7 million during the third quarter. At this rate, it's going to be a while before Celldex needs to visit the equity tap again. That said, investors were also pleased to hear that Celldex shares will most likely stay on the Nasdaq exchange despite not meeting the $1.00 minimum.
The company plans to transfer to the Nasdaq Capital Market exchange for 180 days beginning later this month. If results from ongoing programs don't lift the stock past the minimum bid threshold by then, Celldex intends to implement a reverse stock split to maintain its listing.
