Evaxion Biotech Expands Vaccine Development Collaboration with MSD

Evaxion Biotech inks vaccine licensing deal with MSD By Investing.com

COPENHAGEN - Evaxion Biotech A/S (NASDAQ: EVAX), a clinical-stage TechBio company, has entered into an option and license agreement with pharmaceutical giant MSD, known as Merck & Co., Inc. in the U.S. and Canada, for the development of two preclinical vaccine candidates. The agreement, announced today, marks a significant milestone for Evaxion, leveraging its AI-Immunology™ platform. Under the terms of the agreement, Evaxion grants MSD the option to exclusively license its vaccine candidates EVX-B2 and EVX-B3. EVX-B2 is aimed at preventing Gonorrhea, while EVX-B3 targets an undisclosed infectious agent. Evaxion will receive an upfront payment of $3.2 million and could receive up to $10 million in 2025 if MSD exercises its licensing option. Additionally, Evaxion may receive up to $592 million in milestone payments per product, plus royalties on net sales. This deal expands on the existing partnership between the two companies, which began collaborating on EVX-B3 in 2023. MSD, through its Global Health Innovation Fund, also became Evaxion's largest shareholder following a private placement round and participated in the company's public offering earlier this year. Christian Kanstrup, CEO of Evaxion, expressed that the collaboration with MSD validates their technology and strategy to advance their vaccine pipeline. Tarit Mukhopadhyay, Vice President at MSD, highlighted the importance of vaccines in reducing the impact of infectious diseases and their enthusiasm to progress these candidates into clinical development. The financial details of the agreement and the potential of the vaccine candidates to address significant unmet medical needs are of particular interest to investors. Evaxion is set to discuss the agreement in greater detail during a conference call and webcast on Friday, where they will also address other company milestones. The development of EVX-B2 and EVX-B3 through this partnership could contribute to the global efforts in combating infectious diseases, pending successful clinical development and regulatory approvals. This information is based on a press release statement from Evaxion Biotech. In other recent news, Evaxion Biotech has made significant strides in its clinical trials and vaccine development. The company reported positive one-year follow-up data from a Phase 2 study of their cancer vaccine candidate, EVX-01, demonstrating a favorable response rate of 69%. This was highlighted by H.C. Wainwright, which maintained a Buy rating on Evaxion's shares. Evaxion also launched an updated version of its artificial intelligence (AI) platform, EDEN™ 5.0, to expedite the development of effective bacterial vaccines. The platform showcased a strong predictive capability, suggesting a significant advancement in cancer treatment. Furthermore, the company reported breakthrough pre-clinical results for its EVX-B2 mRNA vaccine candidate targeting gonorrhea, demonstrating the versatility of its AI-Immunology™ platform. On the financial front, Evaxion expects to generate $14 million in business development income, with current cash reserves anticipated to fund operations until early 2025. The company also introduced Mads Kronborg as the new VP of Investor Relations and Communication, indicating a focus on multi-partner collaborations and key milestones. These are recent developments in the company's ongoing operations. As Evaxion Biotech (NASDAQ: EVAX) embarks on its partnership with pharmaceutical titan MSD, investors are keenly observing the company's financial health and market performance. According to InvestingPro data, Evaxion's market capitalization stands at a modest $15.89 million, reflecting the scale of the company in the broader biotech landscape. The company's Price to Book ratio, as of the last twelve months leading up to Q2 2024, is at a high 12.59, which could suggest that the stock is currently trading at a premium compared to its book value. Despite the exciting prospects of the EVX-B2 and EVX-B3 vaccine candidates, InvestingPro Tips indicate that analysts do not expect Evaxion to be profitable this year, which aligns with the company's reported operating income margin of -6871.58% for the same period. This could be a point of concern for investors looking for near-term profitability. Additionally, the company's stock has experienced a significant decline over the past week, with a 10.16% drop in price total return, possibly reflecting market reactions to broader industry trends or company-specific events. Investors may also note that while Evaxion is quickly burning through cash, its liquid assets are reported to exceed short-term obligations. This suggests that the company has sufficient liquidity to meet its immediate financial needs, an important consideration given the capital-intensive nature of biotech research and development. For those interested in further insights, InvestingPro offers additional tips on Evaxion, providing a more comprehensive analysis to support investment decisions. As the company continues to leverage its AI-Immunology™ platform and advance its vaccine pipeline, the financial health and market dynamics will remain critical factors for stakeholders to monitor. For a deeper dive into Evaxion's financials and market performance, visit https://www.investing.com/pro/EVAX for additional InvestingPro Tips, with a current tally of 11 more tips available to subscribers.

Evaxion significantly expands vaccine development collaboration with MSD - Evaxion Biotech (NASDAQ:EVAX)

Agreement provides MSD with options to license Evaxion's preclinical, AI-designed vaccine candidates EVX-B2 and EVX-B3Evaxion will host a conference call and webcast to discuss the agreement on September 27, 2024 COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Sept. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Evaxion Biotech A/S EVAX ("Evaxion"), a clinical-stage TechBio company specializing in developing AI-Immunology™ powered vaccines, today announced that it has entered into an option and license agreement with MSD (tradename of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA) for two preclinical vaccine candidates. The agreement expands the companies' current collaboration and carries significant value for Evaxion. Under the terms of the agreement, Evaxion has granted MSD an option to exclusively license Evaxion's preclinical vaccine candidates EVX-B2 and EVX-B3. EVX-B2 is a protein-based candidate for Gonorrhea and EVX-B3 targets an undisclosed infectious agent. In return, Evaxion receives an upfront payment of $3.2 million and up to $10 million in 2025, contingent upon MSD exercising its option to license either one or both candidates. In addition, Evaxion is eligible for development, regulatory and sales milestone payments with a potential value of up to $592 million per product, as well as royalties on net sales. "This expanded collaboration with MSD, a world leader in vaccine development and commercialization, is truly transformative for Evaxion. It provides strong validation of our AI-Immunology™ platform and novel vaccine candidates. The agreement follows our strategy of leveraging external collaborations to unlock the value of our technology while advancing our innovative pipeline to create long-term value for patients and our shareholders," says Christian Kanstrup, CEO of Evaxion. "Vaccines offer a powerful option for reducing the impact and spread of infectious diseases," said Tarit Mukhopadhyay, Vice President, Head of Infectious Diseases and Vaccine Discovery, MSD Research Laboratories. "We are excited to expand our collaboration with Evaxion with a focus on advancing EVX-B2 and EVX-B3 into clinical development." Evaxion and MSD have been collaborating on EVX-B3 since 2023. Also in 2023, MSD, through its Global Health Innovation Fund (MGHIF), led a private placement round of financing for Evaxion to become the company's single largest shareholder. MGHIF also participated in Evaxion's public offering in February this year. Conference call and webcast Evaxion's Executive Management will host a conference call and webcast on September 27, 2024, at 14.00 CEST/08.00 EDT, presenting the new agreement as well as discussing other recently achieved company milestones. The call will include a Q&A session. To join the conference call, listen to the presentation and ask verbal questions, please register in advance via this link to receive the dial-in telephone numbers and a unique pin code. The call can be accessed 15 minutes prior to the start of the live event. To join the webcast, please click on this link. The webcast recording will be available on our website shortly after the event. Contact information Evaxion Biotech A/S Mads Kronborg Vice President, Investor Relations & Communication +45 53 54 82 96 mak@evaxion-biotech.com About EVAXION Evaxion Biotech A/S is a pioneering TechBio company based upon its AI platform, AI-Immunology™. Evaxion's proprietary and scalable AI prediction models harness the power of artificial intelligence to decode the human immune system and develop novel immunotherapies for cancer, bacterial diseases, and viral infections. Based upon AI-Immunology™, Evaxion has developed a clinical-stage oncology pipeline of novel personalized vaccines and a preclinical infectious disease pipeline in bacterial and viral diseases with high unmet medical needs. Evaxion is committed to transforming patients' lives by providing innovative and targeted treatment options. For more information about Evaxion and its groundbreaking AI-Immunology™ platform and vaccine pipeline, please visit our website. Forward-looking statement This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The words "target," "believe," "expect," "hope," "aim," "intend," "may," "might," "anticipate," "contemplate," "continue," "estimate," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "will," "can have," "likely," "should," "would," "could," and other words and terms of similar meaning identify forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, risks related to: our financial condition and need for additional capital; our development work; cost and success of our product development activities and preclinical and clinical trials; commercializing any approved pharmaceutical product developed using our AI platform technology, including the rate and degree of market acceptance of our product candidates; our dependence on third parties including for conduct of clinical testing and product manufacture; our inability to enter into partnerships; government regulation; protection of our intellectual property rights; employee matters and managing growth; our ADSs and ordinary shares, the impact of international economic, political, legal, compliance, social and business factors, including inflation, and the effects on our business from the worldwide ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing conflict in the region surrounding Ukraine and Russia and the Middle East; and other uncertainties affecting our business operations and financial condition. For a further discussion of these risks, please refer to the risk factors included in our most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which are available at www.sec.gov. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required by law. Source: Evaxion Biotech Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs