NovoCure (NVCR) Stock Is Trending Overnight — Here's What You Should Know
NovoCure Ltd (NASDAQ:NVCR) shares are trending on Thursday.
Shares of the oncology company surged 29.52% to $13.60 in after-hours trading on Wednesday after the Food and Drug Administration approved Optune Pax for the treatment of locally advanced pancreatic cancer.
First Approval In Three Decades
The approval marks the first new treatment for locally advanced pancreatic cancer in nearly 30 years, according to the company’s announcement.
Optune Pax, which is a portable therapeutic device that delivers Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) noninvasively through wearable arrays, is approved for use with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel chemotherapy.
Frank Leonard, Novocure's CEO, said, “This is a proud moment for Novocure and we look forward to bringing Optune Pax to patients and the healthcare providers who care for them.”
Dr. Vincent Picozzi, PANOVA-3 trial investigator, said Optune Pax “has the potential to be practice changing for the treatment of patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer.”
Phase 3 Trial Results
The PANOVA-3 trial, an open-label Phase 3 study, evaluated Optune Pax in combination with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel against treatment with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel alone in 571 patients.
Median overall survival was 16.2 months, compared with 14.2 months, representing a two-month improvement, with a hazard ratio of 0.82 (p=0.039).
According to the company, the time to pain progression was extended to 15.2 months, compared with 9.1 months. Device-related skin reactions occurred in 76.3% of patients, most of which were Grade 1 or 2.
Trading Metrics, Technical Analysis
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) of NovoCure stands at 31.55.
With a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, the Switzerland-based company has a 52-week high of $22.95 and a 52-week low of $9.82.
The stock of the biotech has fallen 50.50% over the past year.
It is currently positioned about 5.2% above its 52-week low, near the low end.
The long-term trend and weak positioning suggest that, although there may be short-term opportunities, overall sentiment remains negative, and traders should monitor for signs of either a reversal or continued weakness.
Price Action: On Wednesday, NVCR closed at $10.50, up 0.29%, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that NVCR has a negative price trend across all time frames.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.