What happened
Shares of Forte Biosciences (FBRX -1.91%) are imploding on Friday, plunging 81.4% lower as of 11:12 a.m. This huge decline came after the company announced on Thursday evening that top-line data from its phase 2 study evaluating FB-401 in treating atopic dermatitis hadn't met the primary endpoint of the study.
So what
Forte stated that 58% of patients in the phase 2 study who received FB-401 achieved the primary endpoint of EASI-50 (the proportion of patients with 50% or greater improvement on the Eczema Area and Severity Index measurement). However, that was lower than the 60% of patients on placebo who achieved the threshold.
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The company noted that FB-401 did perform better on some secondary endpoints of the study. However, those results weren't statistically significant.
FB-401 is the only candidate in Forte's pipeline. The dismal results from the phase 2 study, therefore, were a crushing blow to the biotech stock.
Now what
Forte plans to continue analyzing the data from the phase 2 study of FB-401. However, the company doesn't intend to advance the program. CEO Paul Wagner said, "We expect to provide investors with an update on the future plans for the company over the next several months."