Thursday 17 June 2021

German biotech CureVac's stock plunges 50% after its COVID-19 vaccine candidate failed a clinical trial

Medical syringes in the mini shopping trolley are seen in front of the CureVac logo displayed on a screen.
  • CureVac lost more than half its value after its COVID-19 vaccine jab showed 47% effectiveness.
  • Results were based on clinical trials conducted in Latin America and Europe on about 40,000 volunteers.
  • The company attributed its results to 29 virus strains in the 10 countries where its trials took place.
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CureVac's shares tumbled by as much as 50% in Thursday's pre-market trading session after the German pharmaceutical firm said its COVID-19 vaccine candidate failed in a clinical trial.

Interim analysis of data from about 40,000 volunteers showed the biotech's jab is only 47% effective, falling short of the study's criteria and the minimum 50% effectiveness threshold required by US regulators.

Data for the late-stage clinical trials that were conducted in Latin America and Europe was released after the US close on Wednesday. The company, backed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, attributed its disappointing results to the fact there are at least 29 COVID-19 strains circulating in the 10 countries where its trials took place.

The Gates foundation owns about 1.7% of CureVac, or 3.1 million shares, according to Bloomberg.

CureVac's US shares are listed on the Nasdaq and plunged after hours from $94.79 at Wednesday's close to $47.60 in Thursday's pre-market session.

The 47% efficacy estimate is based on 134 COVID-cases that occurred at least two weeks after the administration of the second dose, the company said in a statement.

"While we were hoping for a stronger interim outcome, we recognize that demonstrating high efficacy in this unprecedented broad diversity of variants is challenging," CureVac CEO Franz-Werner Haas said.

CureVac said last year that it was working with Tesla on a vaccine printer, which Elon Musk reportedly called "an important product for the world." Musk said in a tweet about the biotech in April that it "sounds like they're a few months away from regulatory approval." This tweet was later deleted.

The company will continue trials of its two-dose messenger RNA vaccine and expects to publish final analysis within the next few weeks.

Read More: The Fed has left rates steady while signaling 2 potential hikes by the end of 2023. Here is what to do with your stocks, bonds, and digital assets, according to top Wall Street and crypto investors.

Read the original article on Business Insider


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