Most people have either had cancer themselves or know someone who has. According to the American Cancer Society, 1 in 3 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with one of the numerous forms of cancer.
Deciphera Pharmaceuticals (DCPH), Mirati Therapeutics (MRTX) and MacroGenics (MGNX -0.92%) are lesser-known biotech companies with significant potential since they focus on oncology therapies. Each of their stock prices have fallen has fallen this year, meaning their shares can still be bought at a decent price point.
All three have seen a boost in second-quarter finances and have late-stage therapies with promise in their pipelines.
Deciphera has a prime pipeline
Deciphera is a solid long-term pick because it has two late-stage therapies and an early-stage therapy, all with blockbuster potential. The lead therapy is Qinlock (ripretinib), already approved as a fourth-line treatment for gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs), which is the company's main revenue driver. It just began another phase 3 trial to treat second-line GIST patients with KIT exon 11 and 17/18 mutations. Qinlock is a receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, meaning it blocks certain receptors on the surface of cancer cells.
The company is awaiting phase 3 and phase 1/2 trial results for vimseltinib in patients with tenosynovial giant cell tumor (TGCT), a rare type of cancer of the joints. Deciphera expects phase 3 trial top-line results in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The last promising therapy is DCC-3116, which is in phase 1 trials as part of a combination therapy for several types of cancers.
In the second quarter, Deciphera reported $38.3 million in revenue, up 17.4% year over year. Its net loss was $48.6 million, or a loss of $0.57 in earnings per share (EPS), compared to a net loss of $43.1 million or EPS loss of $0.60 in the same period a year ago. The company said that as of June 30; it had $389.4 million in cash, enough to fund operations into 2026.
Mirati is still at a good price point
Mirati has seen plenty of upheaval recently, and its stock price is down nearly 13% this year.
In May, the company scrapped its programs for sitravatinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, after it fell short of its efficacy goal as a treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) of the non-squamous type. In July, the company's only marketed product, Krazati (adagrasib), drew a negative opinion from the European Medicines Agency as a NSCLC treatment. The therapy is a KRAS inhibitor, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved in December, to treat locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC with a KRAS G12C mutation.
Earlier this month, the company's CEO David Meek stepped down, and its founder Charles Baum was named to replace him on an interim basis.
Despite all the changes, Mirati is a promising stock. In the second quarter, Krazati brought in $13.4 million in revenue, up 154% year over year. The company had an EPS loss of $3.04, down from the EPS loss of $3.11 in the same period a year ago. While the company is far from turning around its financials, its promising pipeline is enough to make it a frequent takeover target.
The key for Mirati's growth: So far Krazati has shown strong potential as a combination therapy with Merck's Keytruda (pembrolizumab) to be a frontline NSCLC treatment. It did well in a phase 2 trial, and is in a phase 3 trial with Keytruda to treat NSCLC patients with a tumor proportion score (TPS) greater than 50%.
The company also said that MRTX1719 showed a good safety profile and early signs of effectiveness in a phase 1 study to treat solid tumors with MTAP gene deletions. These are present in a variety of cancers, including leukemia and lymphoma, and lung, pancreas, squamous cell, biliary tract, brain, bone, breast, prostate, bladder, mesothelioma, melanoma, endometrial, neuroendocrine, and gastrointestinal cancers.
MacroGenics may have turned a corner
MacroGenics focuses on antibody-based treatments to fight cancer. The company has one marketed product, breast cancer therapy Margenza, and a pipeline with nine programs that include collaborations with Sanofi, Zai Lab, Gilead Sciences, and ImmunoGen.
The stock is down 20% this year, but the company is fresh off a second quarter in which it turned a profit. Revenue was down 49.6% year over year, to $13.1 million. However, thanks to a $50,000 milestone payment from Sanofi -- due to positive top-line data for Sanofi's Tzield (teplizumab-mzwv) in a type 1 diabetes study -- MacroGenics reported net income of $57.5 million, compared to a net loss of $41.3 million in the same period last year. Tzield was originally developed by MacroGenics.
The company recently began a phase 2 study for lorigerlimab to treat metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). And it's starting enrollment in a phase 2 study for vobramitamab duocarmazine to treat mCRPC patients.
MacroGenics has already had a hand in three therapies that have been approved by the FDA. Two are Margenza and Tzield; the third is Zynyz, a therapy for Merkel-cell carcinoma, which is marketed by Incyte. The company has established its drug-development bona fides.
