Shares of Obalon Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:OBLN) more than doubled Wednesday after the medical-device company released more clinical data affirming the effectiveness and safety of its flagship Obalon Balloon System to treat obesity.
The expanded clinical data, complied during a large-scale commercial-uses study of more than 1,400 patients, indicated that average weight loss for patients receiving three balloons and six months of therapy was 21.7 pounds, resulting in a 10.2% reduction in total body weight, according to a statement.
Investors cheered the positive data, sending Obalon’s stock up 233% to $1.30 a share at the close on massive trading volume of 69 million shares.
READ: Obalon Therapeutics shares plunge after bigger-than-expected 1Q loss on sliding revenue
Obalon, based in San Diego, also noted that 50.7% of patients lost at least 10% total body weight and 77.9% lost at least 5%.
Non-serious adverse events occurred in 10.3% of the patients with the most common being abdominal pain (3.8%), nausea (3.0%), and vomiting (1.7%). And there were no serious adverse events (SAEs) reported, Obalon said.
The company presented the expanded data at the Digestive Disease Week 2019 Annual Conference in San Diego, which ended Tuesday.
“The Obalon Balloon registry is the largest endoscopic bariatric therapy registry series in the US,” said Shelly Sullivan, director of the Gastroenterology Metabolic and Bariatric Program at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. “The additional data collected showed significant weight loss in patients treated with this therapy in clinical practice with a good safety profile. These results remain consistent with our previous publications.”
With Obalon’s stock now trading above $1 a share, it should avoid being delisted on the Nasdaq. On May 16, the company received a delisting notification letter from Nasdaq as companies whose share prices fall below $1 typically get the notices. Obalon also received another delisting letter from Nasdaq this month about stockholders’ equity falling below the minimum threshold of $10,000,000, which the stock rally should help negate as well.
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