ImmunityBio Shares Jump 6.8% as Short-Seller Losses Mount and FDA Submission Forthcoming
ImmunityBio shares rose 6.79% to $6.92 on Jan. 21, trading 93.5 million shares, as short-sellers now face about $500 million in losses after its share price tripled in three weeks. The company will submit additional data to the FDA within 30 days for its Anktiva sBLA in non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.
1. ImmunityBio Shares Surge as Short-Sellers Face Heavy Losses
ImmunityBio saw its share price jump by nearly 7% on Jan. 21, propelled by a threefold gain over the past three weeks and intense trading activity roughly five times its average daily volume. This rapid ascent has generated an estimated $500 million in unrealized losses for short-sellers, who held approximately one-third of the public float prior to this rally. Market participants attributed today’s move less to fresh company announcements and more to significant short-covering, following a string of positive clinical data releases and investor presentations highlighting the company’s late-stage immunotherapy pipeline.
2. FDA End-of-Phase Meeting Paves Way for Anktiva Expansion
ImmunityBio confirmed that it completed a Type B end-of-phase meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, discussing additional clinical and manufacturing data required to support a supplemental biologics license application for Anktiva in papillary non–muscle invasive bladder cancer. The company plans to submit the requested information within the next 30 days. If approved, this label expansion could open access to thousands of new patients annually and strengthen ImmunityBio’s position in the bladder cancer market, where current approved therapies generate over $1 billion in annual sales.