A single positive or negative announcement from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can send shares of a biotech firm soaring.
On February 28th, the U.S. FDA approved Reata Pharmeceuticals’ (RETA) lead candidate Skyclarys for treating patients with an inherited neuromuscular disease called Friedreich’s ataxia.
The next day, Reata’s share price skyrocketed 199% to around $93, and its trading volume rose to 15x the average of the previous 90 days.
This is just one recent example of how explosive biotech stocks can be for patient, risk-tolerant investors willing to wait for the next big headline.
The rewards in biotech can change the game completely, which is why our team scours industry news looking for potential catalysts. And boy, do we have a story for you…
We’ve got our finger on one name that’s up for priority review by the FDA next week. We can’t say whether or not this company’s stock will surge on FDA approval in the coming days, but we wanted to share the details behind this potential millionaire-minting catalyst with you first…
Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc (VRCA)
Dermatology therapeutics company Verrica Pharmaceuticals’ lead product candidate, VP-102, is up for priority review by the FDA on Monday, July 23rd. VP-102 is in development to treat molluscum, common warts, and external genital warts, three of the most significant unmet needs in medical dermatology.
VRCA’s share price is up 13% this week, 25% over the past month, and a whopping 163% this year. Will the stock surge following the FDA’s decision? We’ll have to wait and see.
Other potential catalysts may come later this year as a result of the company’s recent partnership with Lytix Biopharma AS to develop and commercialize VP- 315 (formerly LTX-315 and VP-LTX-315) for dermatologic oncology conditions.
The analyst community is increasingly enthusiastic about the stock. As it stands now, 5 of the six analysts offering recommendations say to Buy VRCA, with only one recommending to Hold. There are no Sell recommendations for the stock. A median price target of $11 implies a nearly 50% upside for the stock over the next 12 months.
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