17 Biotech Stocks Moving Today: One Deal Worth USD 1.65 Billion

Key Highlights

• Viatris Inc. agreed to acquire Pacira BioSciences, Inc. for about USD 1.65 billion, sending Pacira shares up over 44%
• Bristol-Myers Squibb Company reported a late-stage win in multiple myeloma, while argenx SE stopped a Sjögren's disease trial for futility
• China SXT Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Sunshine Biopharma, Inc., both penny stocks, fell sharply after new stock offerings
• Several smaller biotech and medtech names announced financing moves, trial updates, or regulatory filings

Biotech investors had a lot to track today. A sector that usually moves on slow-building clinical data instead delivered a billion-dollar acquisition, a late-stage cancer trial win, a high-profile trial failure, and a string of financing moves at smaller companies, all within a single trading session. Seventeen companies, spanning oncology, immunology, gene editing, and diagnostics, released updates that shifted their share prices. Below is a sector-wide roundup, grouped by what kind of news each company delivered, with background on each business and the specific details behind today's announcement.

The Biggest Deal of the Day

Viatris Inc. (NASDAQ:VTRS), a global healthcare company formed in 2020 through the merger of Mylan and Pfizer's Upjohn division, agreed to acquire Pacira BioSciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCRX), a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on non-opioid pain management, for USD 36.50 per share in cash. The deal values Pacira at about USD 1.65 billion and will be carried out through a tender offer followed by a merger, with closing expected by the end of 2026. Pacira's two marketed products, EXPAREL for postsurgical pain and ZILRETTA for knee osteoarthritis pain, generated roughly USD 746 million in revenue and USD 177 million in adjusted EBITDA over the twelve months to June 2026. Viatris said the deal is expected to be immediately accretive to its financial guidance and complements its existing meloxicam pain franchise. Pacira shares surged more than 44% and traded close to the offer price, which may suggest investors see the deal as likely to close. Viatris shares slipped slightly, a common pattern when an acquirer takes on new spending.

Trial Results: One Win, One Setback

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY), a global biopharmaceutical company with a broad oncology and immunology portfolio, announced topline results from its Phase 3 EXCALIBER-RRMM study. The trial tested ZENBEXUS (iberdomide) in combination with daratumumab and dexamethasone against a standard three-drug regimen in 800 patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. The combination showed a 51% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death, with median progression-free survival of 42 months versus 20 months for the comparison group, meeting the study's main goal with statistical significance. The safety profile was consistent with ZENBEXUS's established data. Shares were little changed, as the market may have partly priced in BMY's recent approvals in this disease area.

argenx SE (NASDAQ:ARGX), an Amsterdam-based immunology company best known for its approved drug VYVGART (efgartigimod), announced it will discontinue its Phase 3 UNITY study of subcutaneous efgartigimod in Sjögren's disease. An independent data monitoring committee recommended stopping the trial for futility after an interim analysis concluded it was unable to meet its primary endpoint, a measure of systemic disease activity at week 48. No new safety concerns were identified. The decision removes a closely watched expansion opportunity for the company's main drug franchise beyond its currently approved uses in myasthenia gravis and related conditions. Shares fell over 11%, as the setback may change how investors view the company's broader pipeline.

Sharp Stock Moves Worth Watching

A handful of smaller, lower-priced biotech stocks, often called penny stocks, saw unusually large swings today, mostly tied to new financing activity rather than clinical news.

China SXT Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SXTC), a penny stock and a Chinese company focused on traditional Chinese medicine products, fell nearly 89% after entering a definitive agreement to sell 8 million shares at USD 1.50 per share in a registered direct offering, alongside matching warrants, for expected gross proceeds of about USD 12 million. The steep drop may reflect dilution concerns among existing shareholders given the size of the offering relative to the company's small market value.

Sunshine Biopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBFM), also a penny stock, is a Florida-based pharmaceutical company developing oncology and antiviral treatments alongside a portfolio of generic drugs. Its shares dropped about 40% after the company priced a public offering of roughly 10.9 million units at USD 0.55 per unit, expected to raise about USD 6 million before fees, with proceeds earmarked for general corporate purposes.

Medicus Pharma Ltd. (NASDAQ:MDCX), another penny stock, is a Canadian-led, precision oncology-focused biotech marking its third year as a public company. Shares fell nearly 38% even as the company issued a shareholder update highlighting progress on its three lead assets: CD228V, an antibody-drug conjugate for melanoma and other solid tumors; SkinJect, a treatment for basal cell carcinoma in Gorlin syndrome patients now advancing to a registrational study; and Teverelix, a hormone therapy being developed for prostate cancer and other indications.

Glaukos Corporation (NYSE:GKOS), an ophthalmic medical technology company known for its glaucoma and corneal disease treatments, fell almost 8% despite announcing an exclusive license agreement with RevOpsis Therapeutics for RO-104, a first-in-class tri-specific biologic designed to treat several retinal diseases, plus rights to RevOpsis's broader discovery platform for future candidates. Some market commentary linked the drop to profit-taking after a recent rally tied to other pipeline news, rather than to the licensing deal itself.

Small-Cap Financing Moves

ADC Therapeutics SA (NYSE:ADCT), a Swiss biotech focused on antibody-drug conjugates for blood cancers, announced a comprehensive financial restructuring. The package includes an USD 86.6 million private placement with new and existing institutional investors, an amendment removing a USD 150 million change-of-control payment from its royalty financing agreement, and a loan amendment that cuts outstanding term loan principal to USD 50 million while removing a minimum liquidity requirement. The company said the moves extend its expected cash runway into 2029 to continue funding studies of its approved drug, ZYNLONTA. Shares rose nearly 14%, suggesting investors may have welcomed the reduced financial risk tied to the company's debt load.

Nexalin Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXL), a Texas-based medical device company developing non-invasive brain stimulation therapies for mental health conditions, said it received written confirmation from Nasdaq that it regained compliance with the exchange's minimum bid price rule, after its stock closed above USD 1.00 for 21 consecutive trading days following an earlier reverse stock split. The company still needs to demonstrate compliance with a separate minimum stockholders' equity requirement by January 2027 to maintain its listing.

Regulatory and Pipeline Updates

Several companies advanced existing programs rather than announcing financial moves.

Scholar Rock Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:SRRK), a Massachusetts-based biopharmaceutical company focused on muscle-related diseases, resubmitted its marketing application to European regulators for apitegromab, a spinal muscular atrophy treatment already approved in the United States under the brand ISEMBYLD. The resubmission swaps in an alternate manufacturing facility after the company withdrew its earlier application over compliance issues at a previous site. The company expects a regulatory opinion in the first half of 2027.

Biofrontera Inc. (NASDAQ:BFRI), a dermatology-focused biopharmaceutical company, filed a supplemental application with the FDA to expand use of its approved skin treatment, Ameluz, combined with red light therapy, to cover actinic keratoses on the arms, legs, neck, and trunk, not just the face and scalp. The filing is backed by a Phase 3 trial in which 45.6% of treated patients achieved complete lesion clearance after 12 weeks, compared with 16.7% on a placebo treatment.

Editas Medicine, Inc. (NASDAQ:EDIT), a gene editing company built around CRISPR technology, received regulatory and ethics approval in Australia to begin its first-in-human Strive trial of EDIT-401, an experimental in vivo gene editing treatment designed to lower LDL cholesterol in patients with a genetic high-cholesterol disorder. New preclinical data showing the treatment maintained a roughly 90% reduction in LDL cholesterol over ten months in animal studies will be presented at a major cardiology conference in November.

Cullinan Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CGEM), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing T cell engager therapies, dosed its first patient in a potentially registrational Phase 2 study of CLN-049, an experimental treatment targeting FLT3-expressing cells in relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia, a blood cancer with limited treatment options and no currently approved immunotherapies.

Daré Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:DARE), a penny stock and a women's health-focused biotech, presented Phase 1 data comparing its topical Sildenafil Cream against oral sildenafil in healthy men, showing substantially lower systemic drug exposure with the topical version. The data supports further development of the cream as a potential treatment for female sexual arousal disorder, a condition with no FDA-approved drug treatment today.

Co-Diagnostics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CODX), a penny stock and a molecular diagnostics company known for its PCR-based testing platform, announced its first full Vector Smart mosquito-surveillance laboratory installation for a Native American tribal health department, allowing the tribe to test mosquito samples for diseases including West Nile virus and Zika locally rather than sending samples elsewhere.

Aclarion, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACON), a penny stock and a healthcare technology company focused on diagnosing chronic back pain, said it broadened the enrollment criteria for its pivotal CLARITY trial after enrollment lagged under stricter original criteria, with the revised criteria now approved at nine of its eleven active trial sites.

Myriad Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYGN), a molecular diagnostics and precision medicine company, and SOPHiA GENETICS S.A. (NASDAQ:SOPH), a Swiss healthcare technology company known for its genomic data analysis platform, announced a collaboration with AstraZeneca to develop a new prostate cancer biomarker, called PrGIS, intended to help identify patients likely to benefit from precision oncology treatments.

The Bottom Line

Today's biotech news highlights how differently the market can react even within the same sector on the same day. A single large acquisition and one strong late-stage trial result stood out as the biggest stories, while several smaller companies saw outsized price swings tied to new financing rounds rather than clinical breakthroughs. For readers tracking biotech stocks, the gap between large, well-covered names and thinly traded penny stocks remains worth watching, since smaller companies can see much sharper price moves on comparatively routine announcements. As always, clinical and regulatory outcomes in this sector carry real uncertainty, and today's gains or losses may not say much about how these stocks perform from here.