On October 5, 2022 Biohaven reported the company officially launched as a newly independent company, spun out of its former parent as part of Pfizer’s $11.6 billion acquisition, which closed on Oct. 3 (Press release, Biohaven Pharmaceutical, OCT 5, 2022, View Source [SID1234643836]). Led by the same CEO, Vlad Coric, and publicly traded under the same stock ticker, the new Biohaven retains a pipeline of experimental medicines for a range of neurological disorders, four of which are already in clinical testing. It holds nearly $258 million in cash to fund its operations and no debt.
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"I am enthusiastic about continuing to lead our team in new, exciting directions as we strive to bring best-in-class therapies to patients for a broad range of diseases with few or no treatment options," said Coric in an Oct. 4 statement. "If past is prologue, this proven team will continue to succeed in achieving its mission for patients, shareholders and employees."
So far, investors appear to be giving Coric and his team some credit. Biohaven’s shares, which opened trading on Tuesday at a reset value of $7.30 per share, rose to more than $10 apiece by mid-morning on Wednesday, equating to a market value north of $700 million.
The new Biohaven’s most advanced drug candidate is a medicine called troriluzole, which is in late-stage testing for obsessive compulsive disorder and a genetic condition known as spinocerebellar ataxia, or SCA. In the latter condition, however, Phase 3 clinical trial results released in May showed the drug did not perform significantly better than placebo on the study’s main measure. The drug has previously failed studies in Alzheimer’s disease and in severe anxiety.
Biohaven isn’t giving up on SCA yet, focusing on a subset of patients who might benefit and signaling plans to continue regulatory discussions. But it’s focusing more on another drug, dubbed BHV-7000 and acquired via a $100 million deal earlier this year. That medicine is in testing for epilepsy as well as mood and pain disorders.
The company also has a drug for spinal muscular atrophy in Phase 3 testing, a multiple myeloma treatment in a Phase 1 study and half a dozen other discovery-stage programs.