Hoth Therapeutics Inc. (HOTH) had meme-like trading on April 11, 2022. The biopharmaceutical company released development updates for its novel cancer therapeutic, HT-KIT which prevented cancer cell growth. The positive data caused an upswing by a huge 70.48% in HOTH stock during regular trading. Consequently, the stock reached a value of $1.05 at the end of the session. But this uptick could not last long as the following news resulted in a downtrend in the after-hours session.
After the bell, the company announced a proposed public offering with EF Hutton division of Benchmark Investments LLC as its book-running manager. The company has initiated an underwritten public offering of its common stocks, details of which will be filed with the SEC in a prospectus supplement.
This news caused HOTH stock to fall by 11.43%. Hence, the stock went down to a value of $0.93 a share in late trading on Monday.
HOTH’s HT-KIT Developments
The company recently used its HT-KIT mRNA frame-shifting approach on mast cell leukemia cells in vitro via a sponsored scientific research agreement. The agreement was signed with North Carolina State University.
The treatment with HT-KIT not only prevents cancer cell growth but also resulted in cell death over 72 hours. Moreover, reduction of other organs infiltration and increased tumor cell death were seen in a humanized mast cell leukemia mouse model. These results were achieved when HT-KIT induced frameshifted c-KIT mRNA.
In simple words, the drug helps in turning off a key signal that is involved in various aggressive cancers.
Thus, the company is working on the next round of preclinical studies which would be utilized for the pre-IND meeting with the FDA.
Potential and Outlook
The oncology market is full of many opportunities as the prevalence of cancer disease among the global population continues to rise. Currently, the market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.2% from 2021 to 2030. The need for effective cancer treatment with lower side effects than traditional chemotherapy is fueling growth in the segment.
Thus, while the market is full of opportunities, HOTH has still a long way to go before it makes any value of the latest cancer-killing development. Being just in the preclinical stage of development of the drug, the company is years away from leveraging the potential of the drug candidate.
Conclusion
On Monday, the company’s HT-KIT development of cancer-killing potential caused a huge rally in the stock. But the rally was cut short by an after-hours announcement of a proposed public offering. While the gains were eventually to succumb to corrections but the offering news caused HOTH to trade in the red in the after-hours session
