Immunomedics CFO Steps Down, Stock Has Fallen Steadily Since ASCO Fiasco

Immunomedics CFO Steps Down, Stock Has Fallen Steadily Since ASCO Fiasco June 22, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff

MORRIS PLAINS, N.J. – Shares of Immunomedics, Inc. have lost more than half their value since the company’s presentation was rejected by the American Society of Clinical Oncology earlier this month. Shares have continued to drop this morning after Immunomedics’ chief financial officer resigned his position.

Peter Pfreundschuh stepped down to pursue “other career opportunities,” the company announced Tuesday. Immunomedics said Pfreundschuh’s departure “is unrelated to his work performed at Immunomedics, and no issues have been raised regarding the integrity of the company's financial statements.”

Since its peak of $5.30 per share on June 2, Immunomedics’ stock is currently trading at $2.44 per share, as of 9:45 a.m. Immunomedics stock has been on a continual decline since its presentation was rejected. ASCO rejected the presentation after it was discovered the company was trying to use old and previously presented data for its triple negative breast cancer drug IMMU-132. Presenting old data as new is against the rules of ASCO. The presentation, which can currently be found on Immunomedics’ website, was previously presented at a network meeting in April. That information was also discussed on a conference call with investors, according to earlier news reports. ASCO accepted the abstract on the premise it contained new or updated information. In their defense at the time of the conference, Cynthia Sullivan, president and chief executive officer of Immunomedics, said she was trying to reverse ASCO’s position, stating it was the belief of the company that the information was different than previously presented.

New Jersey-based Immunomedics’ IMMU-132, its lead investigational antibody-drug conjugate, sacituzumab govitecan, earned a Breakthrough Therapy designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in February. IMMU-132 is aimed at providing treatment for patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) who have failed at least two prior therapies for metastatic disease. After positive Phase II data was reported earlier this year, Immunomedics said it plans to pursue accelerated approval for sacituzumab govitecan as a treatment for patients with TNBC from the FDA.

With the resignation of Pfreundschuh’s, Immunomedics tapped Michael Garone as the new CFO. Prior to joining Immunomedics, he served as CFO of Emisphere Technologies, Inc., a commercial stage, specialty pharmaceutical company. Before joining Emisphere, Garone served as interim chief executive officer and chief financial officer of Astralis, Ltd.

Although he resigned his position, Pfreundschuh will serve as a consultant to Immunomedics for the next few months to ensure a smooth transition of his responsibilities, the company said in a statement.

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