Vaxcyte's shares jump on 'promising' early data on pneumococcal vaccine

Vaxcyte

03/09/2024 14:22

Sept 3 (Reuters) - Vaxcyte's  PCVX.O  shares surged more
than 30% on Tuesday after the vaccine developer said its
experimental pneumococcal vaccine showed promising results in an
early-stage study, with a safety profile similar to rival
Pfizer's  PFE.N  shot.
    Vaxcyte said some doses of vaccine VAX-31 showed immune
responses that exceeded expectations for 20 serotypes, or
variations of the pneumococcal bacteria, which it had in common
with Pfizer's Prevnar 20 vaccine.  
    Pneumococcal disease is a serious bacterial infection caused
by bacteria called streptococcus pneumoniae. It spreads through
direct contact with respiratory secretions such as saliva and
mucus.     
    Vaxcyte's stock was up 33.8% at $108.05 in premarket trading
on Tuesday. The shares have risen 28.6% so far this year ahead
of the data, giving the company a market capitalization of about
$9 billion.  
    The company, which does not have any approved product on the
market, was testing the vaccine in 1,015 healthy adults aged 50
and above to prevent invasive pneumococcal disease.
    In the study, all doses of VAX-31 showed a safety profile
similar to Prevnar 20 through the full six-month evaluation
period, Vaxcyte said.

 (Reporting by Sneha S K in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)
 ((Sneha.SK@thomsonreuters.com;))