Iovance Stock Plunges 12%, Wiping Out $525 Million, After Lung Cancer Data Draws Questions
The cell-therapy maker's shares extended a steep slide after a 59.1% response rate turned out to cover only a small subgroup.
Iovance Biotherapeutics, which makes cell therapies for solid tumor cancers, saw its shares fall 12.13% to $8.40 in Friday trading as of 9:57 a.m. ET, erasing about $525 million in market value. The drop followed lung-cancer data the company released Thursday in an 8-K: a strong response rate that held only in a narrow subgroup.
A subgroup carries the headline number
The company reported a 59.1% response rate in a lung-cancer subgroup, which was selected retrospectively and covers 22 of the 69 patients in the trial. Across all 69 patients on lifileucel, the response rate was 24.6%, against 25.6% previously reported in 39 patients. Two responses still await confirmation.
Iovance plans a supplemental license application in 2027. A new cohort selected by biomarker is set to begin enrolling in November, the company said.
Friday's slide was on pace to be Iovance's second drop of 10% or more this month.
Up 250% this year, then a 34% slide
Iovance shares were up about 250% this year at Thursday's close, well ahead of the S&P 500's gain of about 13%, but had slid 34% over the previous month.
The rally rested on Amtagvi, its one-time cell therapy for previously treated advanced melanoma. Amtagvi drove record second-quarter revenue of $99.3 million, up 66% from about $60 million a year earlier, and a net loss of $47.3 million. Gross margin was 56%.
Interim CEO Frederick Vogt said the company was reviewing its 2026 revenue guidance of $350 million to $370 million, with an update promised during the third quarter. The lung-cancer program is the next test of whether the story extends beyond melanoma.
Iovance is scheduled to report third-quarter results on Thursday, November 5, with biomarker-cohort enrollment due to start in November.
Sources
- SLS, IOVA, IBRX Slump In October As Biotech Stocks Hold Steady: Virginia Pension Fund Raised Stakes In All 3 — Yahoo Finance
- Why Did IOVA Stock Jump Over 10% After-Hours Today? — Yahoo Finance
- Iovance plummets on new phase 2 Amtagvi data for non-small-cell lung cancer | Seeking Alpha — seekingalpha.com
- Iovance, A Top 1% Biotech Stock, Crashes In A Surprise Lung Cancer Twist | Investor's Business Daily — investors.com
- Iovance股價因肺癌試驗數據令人失望而下跌 — Yahoo Finance
- The company's filing (Iovance Biotherapeutics) — SEC filing
- Iovance Biotherapeutics — Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 2026-06-30 (quarterly results) — SEC EDGAR
- Iovance Biotherapeutics — earnings release (Form 8-K, Item 2.02), filed 2026-08-06 — SEC EDGAR
