Boston, MA 03/05/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Arrowhead Research Corp (NASDAQ:ARWR) shares are soaring; a rally that started in pre-market trading has been sustained in the regular session. Already the shares have set a new high for the year which is also the new 12 months high for the stock. As usual, there must be something behind the excitement around ARWR and this is what we are exploring in this article.
It is a well known fact – and those who are not already aware should come to know – that Arrowhead Research Corp (NASDAQ:ARWR) is having a drug candidate that it is seeking to bring forth as treatment for chronic hepatitis B infection (HBV). The drug has already undergone some study stages and required to undergo yet another one in order to prove its efficacy in the treatment of the said infection.
Clinical Trial Approval
In order to enter the next trial stage, ARC-520 needed to obtain regulatory approval and that approval has just come. And this is one of the reasons the stock is racing high. The department of health in Hong Kong issued clinical trial certificate for ARC-520, which now allows Arrowhead Research Corp (NASDAQ:ARWR) to proceed with the next level of the drug study.
The Phase IIa clinical trial of ARC-520 for which approval has been secured, will be conducted in Hong Kong at Price Wales Hospital and Queen Mary Hospital. The randomized study is expected to capture a cohort of eight patients of which six will be given doses of ARC-520 and the remaining two given placebo.
Arrowhead Research Corp (NASDAQ:ARWR) expects that top line results from the study will be available in the third quarter of this year.
Prospects for the drug
The study in which ARC-520 is entering will be mainly for evaluation purposes. The company hopes that at the end of study its projections for the drug will be attained. And if that happens, it means that the drug will be able to boost its revenue position.
Treatment of HBV is a medical solution that is sought globally. It is no wonder that Arrowhead Research Corp (NASDAQ:ARWR) is keen on bringing ARC-520 to the market with impeccable study success story. That being the case, investors are not only already taking this potentially good news into stride, but they are not looking but in betting on the stock. Thus shares are likely to maintain an upward rally as long as the stock price is deemed discounted for entry point bearing in mind the potential ahead.
