Biotechnology company Oncothyreon showed resource stocks how a selloff is done properly, following word that its most advanced drug candidate, a cancer treatment, will not be released until next year.
Germany-based Merck KGaA, Oncothyreon’s drug development partner, erased hopes that Stimuvax would hit the market sooner, saying interim analysis showed that studies involving the drug should continue to a final analysis. Stimuvax, still in late-stage clinical testing, is designed to work by stimulating the body’s immune system so that it can identify and destroy cancer cells. The fact that the trial is continuing is good news, but without any comment from Oncothyreon, analysts say they are having a hard time interpreting the interim analysis.
For good measure, Oncothyreon reported a wider loss in its fourth quarter of $11.5 million, compared with a loss of $6.1 million in the final quarter of 2010. It reported no revenue for the quarter that ended December 31, as Oncothyreon is a development-stage company with no products on the market.
Oncothyreon (ONTY : NASDAQ : US$5.08), Net Change: -3.34, % Change: -39.66%, Volume: 14,672,036
