The markets are up this morning driven by news that the U.S had approved a COVID-19 treatment. Yesterday, the U. S FDA issued an emergency use authorization for the use of blood plasma from people who had recovered from COVID-19 as a treatment.
In a statement, the FDA said that on the basis of available scientific evidence, the blood plasma of people who had recovered from COVID-19 had benefits that outweighed any potential risks. The statement further stated that the Emergency Use Authorization gave the green light for the distribution of the product in the U.S for use by healthcare providers to treat people hospitalized with COVID-19.
Commenting on the development, President Trump has stated that the treatment had so far cut mortality rates by 35%, quoting a study by the Mayo Clinic. Over the weekend, it was also reported that the President was considering fast-tracking a vaccine that was being developed by Oxford University in the U.K.
All these news have led to a surge in optimism across the financial markets, and major U.S indices are strong pre-market. In this environment of high optimism, plasma-related biopharma companies are rallying. Some of the biggest gainers this morning are as below:
ADMA Biologics Inc [NASDAQ: ADMA]
ADMA Biologics is flying high this morning after the FDA approved the use of recovered COVID-19 patients’ plasma as a treatment.
At the time of writing, the stock was up by 70% and gaining. The company is specialized in making plasma biologics for the treatment of a wide array of immune deficiencies and infectious diseases. With the use of plasma approved, investors are optimistic that with its infrastructure in plasma-based treatments, this company stands to benefit significantly in the foreseeable future.
ThermoGenesis Holdings Inc [NASDAQ: THMO]
ThermoGenesis Holdings Inc is another plasma-treatment biotech company that is rallying this morning. The company has the infrastructure for it, and investors are optimistic that it stands to benefit from the approved treatment.
The company operates in two segments and one of them is involved in automated cell separation of progenitor and stem cells taken from umbilical cords blood. It is also involved in the preservation of such blood for clinical applications.
Liminal Biosciences Inc [NASDAQ: LMNL]
This is another top performer this morning and is up by over 60% in pre-market trading. The company operates in two segments and one of them is called Plasma Derived Therapeutics. This segment of the company has a plasma protein purification system that is used in the extraction of protein therapeutics from plasma.
