Dice Therapeutics stock skyrocketed Tuesday after the biotech company unveiled promising early-stage test results for a psoriasis pill.
On today's stock market, shares of Dice stock soared 62.3% to 40. Earlier, shares hit an all-time high.
Dice Chief Executive Kevin Judice says the results suggest Dice's DC-806 could be a best-in-class oral treatment for psoriasis.
After four weeks of treatment, patients showed a 43.7% decline in symptoms on a scale known as PASI, or psoriasis area and severity index. In comparison, placebo recipients had a 13.3% decline.
Now, the company is planning a midstage study beginning in the first half of 2023. Based on the promising data, Dice could also look at testing DC-806 in related diseases, Judice said in a written statement.
Dice Stock's Recent Yo-Yo
Dice's drug works by blocking interleukin-17, a substance in the body tied to inflammation.
The company tested DC-806 in three groups. Two groups of healthy volunteers received different dosages. Dice also showed its first proof-of-concept results in 32 patients with psoriasis. Of the latter group, eight patients received the highest dose and had a nearly 44% decline in symptoms.
In response, Dice stock topped its highest-ever point. Shares began trading in September 2021.
Dice noted the drug had "an excellent safety profile across all dose groups." There were no serious side effects, no incidents that prompted Dice to pull back the dosage, no treatment-related dropouts in the study and no clinically significant changes in patients' blood tests.
Dice stock recently broke out of a cup-with-handle base with a buy point at 22.46, according to MarketSmith.com. But shares later collapsed by nearly 25% below their entry. That easily triggered a sell rule. Investors are encouraged to cut their losses when a stock falls 7%-8% below its buy point.
Despite the recent decline, Dice stock has trended higher since late-September. Shares have a strong Relative Strength Rating of 97, putting them in the leading 3% of all stocks in terms of 12-month performance, according to IBD Digital.
Follow Allison Gatlin on Twitter at @IBD_AGatlin.
