Aug. 23 at 2:42 PM
$LEGN Reading the tea leaves, legend may want
$10B (
$54 share) for Carvykti franchise and a separate price tag for their pipeline including in Vivo CAR-T. Negotiation has likely broke down, and Ying Huang became a persona non grata for JNJ. Negotiation could resume when 1 or more things happens:
1. JNJ wants to accelerate manufacturing and the full control supply of Carvykti with strong results from front line therapy based on CAARTITIDE -5 and 6 read out.
2. JNJ wants to compete aggressively against Gilead impending Anito cel approval in Dec 2026. There will be expansion of TAM given two players marketing aggressively which results in expanding the cell therapy reach to more community centers.
3. For some reasons, Anito cel data underwhelms, despite receiving approval.
4. Legends In Vivo CAR-T data read out exceeds expectations and provides durable response similar to Kelonia’s platform with less side effects. It will immediately derisk platform, and unlocks premium price.
