Novartis Starts Second Phase 2 for MRT-6160, Triggering $37.5M Payment to Monte Rosa
GLUE is trading near its 52-week low of $9.68 (11% above the low).
Summary
Novartis began a Phase 2a/b study of MRT-6160 (DDY391) in active moderate-to-severe psoriatic arthritis, and the first patient visit triggers a $37.5 million milestone payment to Monte Rosa. This is the second Phase 2 for the VAV1 molecular glue degrader under the global license, following the Sjögren's disease study Novartis started in August that brought a $50 million payment. The cash is modest next to the $626 million Monte Rosa held at Q2, but it confirms Novartis is expanding the program across immune-mediated diseases rather than running a single indication. Monte Rosa remains eligible for up to $2.1 billion in development, regulatory and sales milestones, with more Phase 2 initiation payments to come as additional studies start. The company also reported positive MRT-8102 Phase 1 data on October 1, so pipeline news flow has been steady.
At the time of this announcement, GLUE was trading at $10.74 on NASDAQ in the Life Sciences sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $909.4M. The 52-week trading range was $9.68 to $25.77. This news item was assessed with positive market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10. Source: GlobeNewswire.