Quiet Altus Pharma Has Big Things in Store

ALTU-238, however, will allow patients to inject HGH weekly using a fine-gauge needle that will deliver equivalent efficacy to daily injections and won't cause pain or cause significant injection-site reactions.

The biggest validation of ALTU-238 came in December when Genentech signed on as a development partner, grabbing North American rights to market the product. Under terms of the deal, Genentech paid Altus $15 million in cash and purchased another $15 million in Altus stock at $18.88 per share. Altus is eligible for another $140 million in future milestones and will receive double-digit royalties on sales.

Furthermore, Genentech is responsible for all ALTU-238 development costs, including picking up the tab for future clinical trials, and has an option to expand the deal to include ex-U.S. rights.

With this deal set, look for the start midyear of a phase III trial of ALTU-238 in adults. The more significant market opportunity (about 90%) is in kids. Altus and Genentech need to conduct a dose-finding phase II pediatric study this year before they can move to phase III trials next year.

Please note that due to factors including low market capitalization and/or insufficient public float, we consider Altus to be a small-cap stock. You should be aware that such stocks are subject to more risk than stocks of larger companies, including greater volatility, lower liquidity and less publicly available information, and that postings such as this one can have an effect on their stock prices.

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