Biotech & Genomic Medicine▲
NextCure Soars Over 200% on Merger Deal with Avere Therapeutics
NextCure shares surged more than 200% on Tuesday after the company announced a definitive all-stock merger agreement with privately held Avere Therapeutics. The combined company will operate as Avere Therapeutics and trade on Nasdaq under the ticker AVRX, with the deal expected to close in the second half of 2026. Avere's lead program, AVR-001, is an oral IL-23 receptor antagonist with Phase 1b psoriasis data, and a Phase 2b study is set to begin in early 2027. Other notable biotech gainers included Basel Medical Group, which rose over 26% after regaining Nasdaq compliance, and Outlook Therapeutics, up more than 11% ahead of a July 29 FDA decision on its wet AMD treatment ONS-5010.