Avacta Group PLC's (AIM:AVCT) shares rose 8% at 69p after the biotech group unveiled pre-clinical data that could mark a step forward for its tumour-targeting technology.
Two City brokers, Panmure Liberum and Peel Hunt, kept their positive stance on the stock, both citing the results as validation of Avacta’s platform and its potential to attract new partners.
The company presented findings at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Boston, showing that its pre|CISION technology can deliver two complementary cancer treatments through a single molecule.
The drug candidate, AVA6207, combines exatecan, a topoisomerase inhibitor, with MMAE, a microtubule inhibitor, allowing the therapies to act together within the tumour environment.
Peel Hunt described the research as the first dual-payload peptide drug conjugate in the field, noting that it showed proof of concept in both two-dimensional and three-dimensional tumour models.
Panmure Liberum said the results illustrate how the platform can release multiple payloads simultaneously and could spark “further interest from potential partners.”
Avacta plans to present the data to investors in a webcast on 29 October. With two brokers maintaining 'buy' ratings, Panmure Liberum with a 72p price target and Peel Hunt with 99p, the analysts appear willing to give the company credit for progress on its pre-clinical pipeline.