Shares of Aclaris Therapeutics Inc. ACRS,
skyrocketed more than 200% towards a 2 1/2 year high, with massive volume, during Tuesday afternoon trading after the biopharmaceutical company announced “positive” data from a phase 2a study of its treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. The stock shot up 211.1%, putting it on track for its highest close since July 2018, to accelerate all winners on major US stock exchanges. Trading volume soared to 79.7 million shares, compared to the daily average of about 859,000 shares. The company said the Phase 2a trial was randomized, patient-blind, non-sponsor-non-blinded, and placebo-controlled, and that the primary endpoint was the safety and tolerability of ATI-450, an experimental oral MK2 inhibitor. . In the trial, the company said that ATI-450 was generally well tolerated, showed no serious side effects, and showed sustained clinical activity. David Gordon, Aclaris’s Chief Medical Officer, said he believes the data supports the hypothesis that MK2 inhibition is an important new target for the treatment of immuno-inflammatory diseases, and is looking forward to pushing ATI-450 into Phase 2b. bring. Its stock has more than quadrupled (+ 305.5%) in the last three months, while the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF IBB,
is up 19.4% and the S&P 500 SPX,
has gained 10.6%.