Roivant Sciences is making serious changes to subsidiary Immunovant, announcing Monday a series of C-suite changes and new disease targets for Immunovant's leading drug.
Immunovant stock toppled 4.6% to 14.46, while Roivant shares lost 1.1%, ending the regular session at 10.04.
Eric Venker, chief operating officer at Roivant, is taking the helm as Immunovant's new chief executive. He succeeds Pete Salzmann, who retired. Tiago Girao was appointed chief financial officer, replacing Renee Barnett, who stepped down. Girao was the CFO at another Roivant company called Televant. Roche acquired Televant in late 2023.
Immunovant will also investigate its leading drug, IMVT-1402, as a treatment for Sjogren's disease and cutaneous lupus erythematosus. But that pares back plans for the drug to six initial targets from earlier plans to test it in 10 diseases, Leerink Partners analyst David Risinger said in a report.
"But (Roivant) CEO Matt Gline also stated that (management) has additional ideas for future development in 'white space' indications," he said.
Immunovant Focuses On IMVT-1402
The news comes a few weeks after Immunovant decided it wouldn't seek Food and Drug Administration approval for another drug called batoclimab. Batoclimab succeeded in a Phase 3 study of patients with myasthenia gravis and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, but the company expects IMVT-1402 to be a better treatment for both autoimmune conditions.
At the time, Immunovant and Roivant said they were focused on "leveraging data and learnings from the batoclimab studies to inform and accelerate (the) programs with IMVT-1402."
Batoclimab and IMVT-1402 work the same way. Both tamp down levels of immunoglobulin G, or IgG, an autoantibody tied to numerous autoimmune conditions. The companies believe IMVT-1402 will lead to stronger reductions in IgG and, potentially, better improvements in symptoms.
Immunovant has now started a potentially registrational test for IMVT-1402 in patients with Sjogren's, an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the body's moisture-producing glands. It's also running a proof-of-concept study in cutaneous lupus erythematous, or CLE. There have been no new approved treatments for CLE in more than 50 years, Immunovant says.
Shares Fall Alongside Broader Biotech
Immunovant shares have been in a downfall since September 2024, largely following a broader biotech trend. Investor's Business Daily's Medical-Biomed/Biotech industry group has also mostly slumped since November.
Roivant stock, though, has made something of a comeback after hitting a floor at 8.73 on April 7.
Follow Allison Gatlin on X/Twitter at @AGatlin_IBD.
