Biohaven Stock Slumps After Hours As Failed Depression Study Adds To A Brutal 2025 — Retail Eyes Epilepsy And Obesity Catalysts

• The company also announced that it does not plan on additional psychiatric clinical trials and intends to prioritize its resources for other therapeutic areas including immunology, obesity and epilepsy in 2026.
• BHV-7000 failed to meet its primary endpoint in a pivotal Phase II/III clinical trial for bipolar disorder in March.
• Last month, FDA refused to approve the company’s drug Vyglxia in the treatment of Spinocerebellar ataxia, sparking portfolio prioritization measures.

Shares of Biohaven Ltd. (BHVN) slumped 17% after hours on Christmas eve after the company announced that its mid-stage proof-of-concept study evaluating BHV-7000 for the treatment of major depressive disorder did not show a reduction of depressive symptoms.

The company said that no reduction in depressive symptoms were observed in the trial over six weeks as compared with placebo though trends favoring BHV-7000 were observed in some clinically relevant subgroups, including participants with more severe depression.

The drug was safe and well-tolerated with adverse events mostly mild and moderate in intensity and largely resolved spontaneously, the company said.

The company also announced that it does not plan on additional psychiatric clinical trials and intends to prioritize its resources for other therapeutic areas including immunology, obesity and epilepsy in 2026.

BHV-7000 failed to meet its primary endpoint in a pivotal Phase II/III clinical trial for bipolar disorder in March. The company, however, is continuing the study of the drug in adult focal epilepsy.

Other Setbacks This Year

The company’s setbacks this year are not limited to its psychiatry pipeline. Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration refused to approve its drug Vyglxia in the treatment of Spinocerebellar ataxia, a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive loss of voluntary motor control and atrophy of the brain’s cerebellum and brainstem. In a letter, the FDA cited issues including potential bias, design flaws, lack of pre-specification, and unmeasured confounding factors in Biohaven’s drug studies.

The company subsequently announced that it will focus on three late-stage, clinical programs with the greatest potential for value generation over the next year. It also initiated strategic portfolio and cost optimization across multiple programs to achieve an approximately 60% reduction in annual direct research and development spend.

The company said last month that it may pause or delay non-priority programs to maintain its cash runway.

How Did Stocktwits Users React?

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around BHVN stayed within the ‘bearish’ territory over the past 24 hours, while message volume rose from ‘normal’ to ‘high’ levels.

A Stocktwits user dismissed the negative update as “expected” and expressed optimism for the upcoming epilepsy trial. “Good things are to come here,” they wrote.

Yet another user sees the company’s investigational obesity drug being another interesting catalyst besides the epilepsy trial.

BHVN stock is down by 71% this year and by about 70% over the past 12 months. 

Also See: Elon Musk Dismisses Ideas Of SpaceX-Echostar Merger In Road To Going Public: ‘No Reason To Cut Corners’

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com

Share

·

Add us on