Candel Therapeutics Shares Decline Following IPO Pricing
Candel Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CADL) shares experienced a 30% decline in pre-market trading today following the announcement of the company’s IPO pricing. The biopharmaceutical company, specialized in developing immunotherapies for cancer treatment, revealed that 10 million shares of common stock would be offered at a price of $6.00. Additionally, the offering includes pre-funded warrants for over 3.3 million shares priced at $5.99.
Candel expects to raise approximately $80 million before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and other related costs from this offering. This move comes after a significant rise in the stock price earlier in the week, following the company’s announcement of positive results from its phase 3 clinical trial, which saw the share value increase from $4.80 to nearly $14.
The trial evaluated CAN-2409, a viral immunotherapy combined with radiation therapy for the treatment of intermediate-high risk localized prostate cancer. The study achieved its primary endpoint by demonstrating a statistically significant improvement in disease-free survival (DFS). Results indicated a relative increase of 14.5% in DFS at the 54-month mark for patients treated with CAN-2409 compared to those receiving radiation alone. Furthermore, treatment had a notable impact on prostate cancer survival and increased the number of patients reaching low prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels.
Candel also reported that CAN-2409 achieved an 80.4% pathological complete response in post-treatment biopsies at the two-year point, surpassing the 63.6% rate of the control group. Although the shares pulled back from earlier week peaks, they were trading at around $6.75 in recent transactions.
The company additionally shared findings from a phase 2 clinical trial where CAN-2409 was used as a monotherapy in patients with low-intermediate risk localized prostate cancer. While the trial showed numerical improvements in the percentage of patients with negative biopsies leading up to radical treatment and one year later, these did not reach statistical significance. The safety profile in this trial remained consistent with the phase 3 study.
Candel’s recent clinical successes and the subsequent IPO reflect the company’s ongoing efforts to advance its cancer immunotherapy portfolio and provide new treatment options to patients.