Dawson James analyst Jason Kolbert said that a New York Times article on Friday suggesting that the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, is now focusing only on vaccines and abandoning late-stage therapies that can help acute COVID-19 patients recover from Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, or ARDS, "gets it wrong again" as his channel checks with Athersys (ATHX) Mesoblast (MESO) and Pluristem (PSTI) "all suggest it isn't so." According to the article, BARDA is halting funding for treatments for severe forms of COVID-19, with CytoSorbents (CTSO) CEO Phillip Chan saying in an emailed statement that its BARDA application to finance a randomized clinical trial was now in limbo.
FUNDING HALT: When the coronavirus kills, it attacks the lungs, filling them with fluid and robbing the body of oxygen, but earlier this month, BARDA abruptly notified companies and researchers that it was halting funding for treatments for this severe form of COVID-19, The New York Times' Katie Thomas reported on Friday. The author added that the new policy highlights “how staunchly the Trump administration has placed its bet on vaccines” as the way to return American society and the economy to normal in a presidential election year. However, the shift in strategy also shows that the administration is backing away from the relatively modest funding it has provided so far for treatments that address the severe lung ailments, while continuing support for antiviral therapies that could treat people earlier in the course of the disease, Thomas wrote.
CytoSorbents CEO Phillip Chan, in an emailed statement, said that its BARDA application to finance a randomized clinical trial was now in limbo, according to the publication. The company's CytoSorb device aims to filter out the excess cytokines that are secreted by the immune system when it becomes overactive. While the Food and Drug Administration granted emergency authorization for the device to be used in COVID-19 patients, the CEO said the CytoSorb should undergo testing in a rigorous clinical trial.
CHECKS DISPUTE NYT COVID CONTENTION: Dawson James analyst Jason Kolbert believes that the New York Times article suggesting that BARDA is now focusing only on vaccines and abandoning late-stage therapies that can help acute COVID-19 patients recover from Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, or ARDS, "gets it wrong again" as his channel checks with Athersys, Mesoblast and Pluristem "all suggest it isn't so." Kolbert, who contends that the New York Times "now has an 'open' agenda to defeat Trump and make all things Trump look bad," sees these therapeutics - MultiStem for Athersys and similar approaches from Mesoblast and Pluristem - as "viable and critical" to late-stage ARDS patients.
"For us, it's not political, its science, and we believe these therapeutics, MultiStem for Athersys and similar approaches from Mesoblast and Pluristem, are likely to show efficacy in taming the immune response while not interfering with the body's ability to clear virus," Kolbert argued. The analyst has Buy ratings on Athersys, Mesoblast and Pluristem.
PRICE ACTION: In morning trading, shares of Cytosorbents have dropped over 2% to $8.83, while Mesoblast has plunged about 6% to $12.90 and Pluristem has slipped almost 4% to $7.37. On the flip side, Athersys’ stock has jumped almost 20% to $2.36.
"Trump Effect" is The Fly's recurring series of exclusive stories that highlight stocks that are being impacted, or are predicted to be impacted, by the comments, actions and policies of President Trump and his administration.
CytoSorbents
-0.13 (-1.45%)
Athersys
+0.465 (+24.16%)
Mesoblast
-0.86 (-6.28%)
Pluri
-0.3 (-3.92%)