Vera Therapeutics soars on strong Phase 3 results in rare kidney disease
Arctic Aurora LifeScience and Arctic Aurora Biotech Select holding Vera Therapeutics increased more than 65% on June 2, upon announcing competitive phase 3 clinical data in IgAN, a severe kidney disorder.
In IgA nephropathy or IgAN patients produce immunoglobulins, a type of protein that plays part in the immune system, with a faulty pattern of sugar molecules attached to them. Due to this, the patients’ immune system recognises these immunoglobulins as foreign and B cells start to produce antibodies to eliminate them. These antibodies clamp together with the faulty immunoglobulins and accumulate in the kidney, causing inflammation and declining kidney function. Approximately, 160 000 patients suffer from this debilitating disease in the US alone.
Vera’s drug, atacicept stops B cell activation and antibody production and thus improves the symptoms of the disease. In their recent press release, they announced that atacicept showed a 42% placebo-adjusted decrease in the protein content of urine (proteinuria). In healthy individuals the urine does not contain proteins, so tracking protein levels is an important marker to follow in kidney diseases. This result was notably better than expectations and what the company showed in the phase 2b trial, (33% reduction), which was an important contributor to the recent rally in the stock. These results also imply that atacicept might be able to effectively preserve kidney function (measured by eGFR, the kidney’s filtration rate). The recent data also put Vera in a strong competitive position. The safety of the drug was in line with previous trials. Importantly there were zero serious infections, which could be a risk if one inhibits B cell activation, since they are an important component of our defence system against infections.
These results further strengthened the profile of atacicept, that could reach peak sales of USD 1.5 billion according to analyst estimates.
Latest news
Arctic Asset Management - Arctic Midt i Måneden - Smooth sailing beneath choppy waters
Teamet har levert sterk aksjeavkastning over tid – i både krevende og skiftende markeder. I denne episoden forteller våre erfarne aksjeforvaltere hvordan de navigerer i en verden preget av støy, skiftende signaler og uro. Sindre Sørbye og Ole Dahl er i studio hos Albert Collett.
Arctic Asset Management - Markedskommentar mai 2025
Mai måned viste en sterk utvikling i globale finansmarkeder, preget av økt risikovilje etter turbulensen i april. Verdensindeksen (MSCI World i NOK) steg 5,9 %, mens amerikanske aksjer, representert ved S&P 500 (USD), økte med 6,2 %. Oslo Børs (OSEFX, NOK) hadde også en positiv måned med en oppgang på 5,3 %, drevet av bred sektoroppgang hvor spesielt energi og finans bidro sterkt, mens sektoren defensivt konsum trakk ned, hovedsakelig på grunn av svak utvikling innen lakseoppdrett. Norden (VINX Index, NOK) steg markedet med 2,6 %, hvor industri og finans var de største positive bidragsyterne, mens eiendom bidro negativt.
Arctic Asset Management - The take outs in biotech continues
Sanofi acquires Arctic Aurora LifeScience portfolio company Blueprint Medicines.
On 2 June 2025, the French pharmaceutical company announced its agreement to acquire the Boston-based biotech company Blueprint Medicines in a deal valued at 9.5 billion USD. The acquisition centres on Blueprint's flagship drug, Ayvakit (avapritinib), which is the only approved treatment for advanced systemic mastocytosis in both the EU and the US.
Arctic Asset Management - Gjeld, usikkerhet og en fisk med potensial
I mai-episoden av Arctic Midt i Måneden ser vi nærmere på USAs økende gjeld og spør om landet har økonomisk styrke til å håndtere renteutgiftene. Vi snakker også om hvorfor "usikkerhet" er blitt et nøkkelord i årets rapporteringssesong, hvordan fondene er posisjonert – og hva som gjør en fisk til et fristende investeringscase. Forvalterne Trond Tømmerås og Alexander Larstedt Lager er gjester i studio hos investeringsdirektør Albert Collett.
Arctic Asset Management - What has caused the recent volatility in the healthcare sector?
Arctic Aurora LifeScience's CIO, Ulrica Slåne Bjerke, and portfolio manager, Daniel Bolanowski, share their thoughts on what caused the sector's bumpy ride in April and the first few days of May.
Arctic Asset Management - Markedskommentar april 2025
Nyhetsbildet i april var preget av sterke utspill fra president Trump der hans ‘Liberation Day’ tariff-annonseringer 2. april skapte ekstreme svingninger i finansmarkedene de påfølgende dagene.