In today’s briefing:
- Daiichi Sankyo Placement – US$1.2bn Deal but Momentum Isn’t the Best, Last Deal Didn’t Do Well
- Hansoh Pharmaceutical (3692 HK): Placing Shares to Fund R&D Amid Stellar 1H Performance
- Ascletis Pharma (1672 HK): Placement Bleak; Commercialization To Take Time; Lack Formidable Pipeline
- DWTX: Over 50 Patients Enrolled Thus Far in Phase 2b Halneuron Trial Interim Read Out in 4Q25
- SNGX: Dusquetide (SGX945) Granted Orphan Drug Designation for Behcet’s Disease
- Wuxi Biologics (2269 HK) 25H1 – Concerns Behind the Performance Rebound
- Bayer AG: An Insight Into Its Clinical Development
- CTSO: CytoSorbents announced the De Novo denial on DrugSorb-ATR was upheld by the FDA. However
Daiichi Sankyo Placement – US$1.2bn Deal but Momentum Isn’t the Best, Last Deal Didn’t Do Well
- A group of shareholders are looking to raise up to US$1.2bn via selling most of their stake in Daiichi Sankyo (4568 JP) .
- While the deal shouldn’t come as a surprise, given the ongoing cross-shareholding unwind, the last deal in the stock didn’t do well.
- In this note, we will talk about the placement and run the deal through our ECM framework.
Hansoh Pharmaceutical (3692 HK): Placing Shares to Fund R&D Amid Stellar 1H Performance
- Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group (3692 HK) is placing 108M shares at the price of HK$36.30 per share. 65% of the proceeds will be used for the R&D of new innovative drugs.
- Hansoh’s late-stage pipeline seems to be interesting, as its key focus areas being oncology and metabolic diseases, which are among the fast-growing therapeutic areas, with huge addressable patient population.
- Hansoh has announced better-than-expected 1H25 result, with both revenue and net profit beating consensus. Innovative drugs revenue increased 22% YoY to RMB6B, contributing 82.7% of total revenue.
Ascletis Pharma (1672 HK): Placement Bleak; Commercialization To Take Time; Lack Formidable Pipeline
- Ascletis Pharma Inc (1672 HK) announced the placement of 52.4M shares for subscription at HK$16.45 per share.
- The company intends to use 90% of proceeds for further R&D of its drug candidates with respect to both subcutaneously injected peptides and oral peptides, into clinical trials for obesity.
- The company will take time to cash in fully from the commercialization efforts in near future, given the limited opportunity it has in terms of the drug pipeline basket.
DWTX: Over 50 Patients Enrolled Thus Far in Phase 2b Halneuron Trial Interim Read Out in 4Q25
- On August 13, 2025, Dogwood Therapeutics, Inc. announced financial results for the second quarter of 2025 and provided a business update.
- Enrollment in the Phase 2b trial of Halneuron for the treatment of Chemotherapy Induced Neuropathic Pain (CINP) has reached 52 patients.
- An interim data readout is expected in the fourth quarter of 2025.
SNGX: Dusquetide (SGX945) Granted Orphan Drug Designation for Behcet’s Disease
- On August 14, 2025, Soligenix, Inc. (SNGX) announced financial results for the second quarter of 2025 and provided a business update.
- Following the release of promising Phase 2a clinical trial results for SGX945 (dusquetide) in Behcet’s Disease, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) to dusquetide for “treatment of Behcet’s Disease”.
- The company has begun work on a subcutaneous formulation of SGX945, after which it is planning to perform a Phase 2b trial in Behcet’s Disease.
Wuxi Biologics (2269 HK) 25H1 – Concerns Behind the Performance Rebound
- WuXi Bio’s 25H1 growth was driven by XDC against the backdrop of BD wave of innovative drug assets. Coupled with biotech booming market, we witnessed obvious recovery in CXO’s performance.
- Intensive share reduction by major shareholders has weakened market confidence in long-term value. Given Li Ge’s rich experience in capital operation, WuXi Bio’s valuation potential may have been fully realized.
- Current investment logic has shifted to the growth of overseas BD/licensing cooperation based on China’s low-priced but high-quality innovative drugs due to engineer dividend, which may have certain growth ceilings.
Bayer AG: An Insight Into Its Clinical Development
- Bayer AG’s latest quarterly performance presents a mixed outlook, showing areas of growth and challenges.
- In terms of financial results, the company’s sales remained flat in the first half of 2025, with second-quarter net sales growing slightly by 1% in currency and portfolio-adjusted terms.
- Despite adverse currency movements, Bayer has successfully maintained a stable EBITDA, although foreign exchange headwinds impacted the top line with negative effects valued at around EUR 550 million.
CTSO: CytoSorbents announced the De Novo denial on DrugSorb-ATR was upheld by the FDA. However
- CytoSorbents is commercializing its E.U. approved CytoSorb blood purification technology to treat life-threatening conditions in the intensive care unit and cardiac surgery.
- The company also seeks U.S. and Canadian approval of a second product, DrugSorb-ATR, to reduce perioperative bleeding risk in patients on blood thinners in cardiac surgery.
- Based on the results of its STAR-T trial, the company submitted for FDA De Novo approval and Health Canada licensure in late 2024 and is currently navigating the appeal process with both agencies.
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