IBIO) is one of many biotechs that benefited from the hype surrounding a potential novel coronavirus vaccine in February. During the first five months of the year, IBIO stock shot up a massive 333.73%. However, the stock is up a relatively modest 73% since May.” data-reactid=”12″>iBio (NYSEAMERICAN:IBIO) is one of many biotechs that benefited from the hype surrounding a potential novel coronavirus vaccine in February. During the first five months of the year, IBIO stock shot up a massive 333.73%. However, the stock is up a relatively modest 73% since May.
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The declining enthusiasm surrounding the stock is due to the slow progress in its Covid-19 vaccine development. Additionally, it has also failed to secure significant manufacturing contracts in scaling production with its FastPharming technology. Therefore, iBio stock continues to be a purely speculative play.
since my previous article.” data-reactid=”30″>One of the positives for iBio investors is its recent manufacturing deal with Planet Biotechnology. This deal comes at an ideal time for iBio, which needed such a contract to bolster investor confidence. However, apart from that, its more of the same since my previous article.
InvestorPlace – Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips” data-reactid=”31″>InvestorPlace – Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips
At this point, iBio has a lot of ground to make up before it can be considered a buy.
PFE), BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) and Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) are on track to release their respective vaccine candidates by the end of 2020 or early 2021.” data-reactid=”34″>Biotech giants such as Pfizer (NYSE:PFE), BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) and Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) are on track to release their respective vaccine candidates by the end of 2020 or early 2021.
approval from the German research institute, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, to conduct Phase 2/3 clinical trials of their Covid-19 vaccine candidates. Additionally, Moderna also announced that its final stage vaccine trial of 30,000 patients has already secured 40% enrollments.
AZN) and the University of Oxford have also secured similar enrollments for their Phase 3 trials. Despite the president’s fast-tracking production of the Covid-19 vaccines, nine biopharma CEOs have assured that safety and efficacy will not be compromised.” data-reactid=”38″>AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) and the University of Oxford have also secured similar enrollments for their Phase 3 trials. Despite the president’s fast-tracking production of the Covid-19 vaccines, nine biopharma CEOs have assured that safety and efficacy will not be compromised.
On the flipside, iBio’s vaccine candidates are still in the early testing phase and human testing is in the pipeline. The IBIO-200 program is almost six months old, and there is still no confirmation of human trials so far. Therefore, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that the company is virtually out of the coronavirus vaccine race.
With the initiation of IBIO-200/201 programs, you would expect cash burn to be higher than the $3 million in the previous quarter. Additionally, it hasn’t received any funding from third parties, which further complicates its position.
Last month, iBio struck a deal with therapeutics company, Planet Biotechnology, in scaling production of its Covid-19 therapeutic candidate, called ACE2-Fc. ACE2-Fc will reduce the chances of a “viral escape” and act as a neutralizing antibody against the virus.
“We see tremendous opportunity in our partnership with Planet to develop this novel immunoadhesin molecule as potential COVID-19 disease treatment,” stated Tom Isett, CEO of iBio.
iBio’s FastPharming platform can effectively scale up production of the molecule using its plant-based systems. Under the agreement, the company has exclusive rights to manufacture Planet’s ACE2-Fc. Additionally, it will receive pre-specified payments based on the completion of developmental milestones.
Investing in IBIO stock as coronavirus vaccine play is foolish.
The company’s vaccine is still in the preclinical stage, and recent results weren’t too impressive. This is mainly because the testing was performed on mice without any updates about human testing.
However, its FastPharming has a lot of potential, and should be its primary focus going forward.
At this time, though, it is tough to consider IBIO stock anything more than a speculative bet.
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