What happened
Shares of developmental-stage biopharma Checkpoint Therapeutics (CKPT -7.03%) rose by as much as 16% in pre-market action Tuesday morning. The biotech stock was heating up in response to a positive late-stage trial readout for cosibelimab, its experimental metastatic cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma therapy, along with two follow-on price target upgrades from H.C. Wainwright analyst Joseph Pantginis and Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Jennifer Kim.
So what
In its pre-market press release, Checkpoint said that cosibelimab produced an impressive 47.4% confirmed objective response rate in its registration-enabling trial for metastatic cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. What's key to understand is that the company's advanced skin cancer drug could be a best-in-class product if these data stand up to the scrutiny of a formal regulatory review.
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And in light of this promising late-stage trial data, the analysts at H.C. Wainwright and Cantor Fitzgerald are both suggesting that the developmental-stage biotech stock could appreciate by more than 800% over the next 12 months. With that kind of glowing optimism from Wall Street, it's no surprise that Checkpoint's shares are perking up in a big way Tuesday morning.
Now what
Are these sky-high price targets realistic? Cosibelimab's peak annual sales have been estimated to be as high as $1.3 billion. Checkpoint's market cap, as of Monday's closing bell, was under $250 million. So there is a solid rationale for these jaw-dropping price targets. That being said, Checkpoint still has a long road to travel before it can start booking sales. As such, this promising clinical-stage cancer stock is still best suited for the risk-tolerant crowd.
