Why Is Eye Disease Related Gene Therapy Focused MeiraGTx Stock Soaring Today?
Portfolio Pulse from Vandana Singh
MeiraGTx Holdings plc (MGTX) announced an asset purchase agreement with Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) company, for the gene therapy bota-vec for XLRP. MeiraGTx will receive $130 million in upfront and near-term milestone payments, with potential for an additional $285 million upon commercial sales and manufacturing technology transfer. J&J will handle any royalty or milestone payments to UCL Business plc. MeiraGTx also has a commercial supply agreement with J&J for bota-vec manufacturing. Previously, Sanofi SA (SNY) invested $30 million in MeiraGTx. The deals extend MeiraGTx's cash runway to mid-2026. MGTX shares surged 22.50% to $6.02.
December 21, 2023 | 4:11 pm
News sentiment analysis
Sort by:
Ascending
NEUTRAL IMPACT
Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceuticals acquires the remaining rights for bota-vec from MeiraGTx, taking on development, manufacturing, and commercialization responsibilities.
While the acquisition of bota-vec rights is a positive development for J&J's gene therapy portfolio, the financial impact is relatively small compared to J&J's overall business, likely resulting in a neutral short-term impact on the stock.
CONFIDENCE 80
IMPORTANCE 60
RELEVANCE 70
NEUTRAL IMPACT
Sanofi SA previously invested $30 million in MeiraGTx, purchasing shares and securing negotiation rights for certain gene regulation technologies.
Sanofi's investment in MeiraGTx and rights to negotiate for gene regulation technology are strategic, but the impact on Sanofi's stock is likely to be neutral in the short term due to the broader scale of Sanofi's operations.
CONFIDENCE 75
IMPORTANCE 50
RELEVANCE 50
POSITIVE IMPACT
MeiraGTx's stock surged due to the asset purchase agreement with Janssen Pharmaceuticals for bota-vec, with significant upfront and milestone payments.
The substantial upfront payment and additional milestone payments from the agreement with Janssen Pharmaceuticals provide a strong financial incentive and validate the potential of MeiraGTx's gene therapy, leading to increased investor confidence and a surge in stock price.
CONFIDENCE 90
IMPORTANCE 90
RELEVANCE 100