What happened
Zymeworks (ZYME -0.12%) stock is shooting through the roof today in response to a juicy buyout offer from a division of All Blue Capital. The Dubai-based private equity group appears to be reacting to new clinical trial data for the company's cancer drug candidate, zanidatamab. The stock has gained 35.9% as of 10:26 a.m. ET on Friday.
So what
Zanidatamab is an antibody that targets HER2 receptors in an attempt to treat patients with different forms of bile duct cancer. Previous HER2 drugs, such as Herceptin, have been standard breast cancer treatments for decades. Zanidatamab's exciting because it offers a new variation on the old theme.
Developing new drugs gets exponentially more expensive as those drugs get closer to earning FDA approval. As a pre-commercial drug developer with limited resources, Zymeworks really isn't in a great position to eventually launch its experimental treatment if it can earn approval. This is one reason investors are thrilled with All Blue Capital's all-cash offer.
Image source: Getty Images.
Now what
If the buyout can get past regulators, as widely expected, Zymeworks shareholders will receive $10.50 per share. That's a little more than twice the stock's closing price on Thursday and significantly more than it's worth at the moment.
Zymeworks' candidate is an antibody that binds to two different areas on HER2 receptors. With an extra hand to hold on to its target, zanidatamab could be effective at lower dosages that are easier for patients to tolerate.
On Saturday, June 4, 2022, and again on Monday, June 6, 2022, Zymeworks will be presenting at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting in Chicago. This could be the first chance the public gets to see the early-stage clinical trial data that inspired All Blue Capital's buyout offer.
