Danish biotechnology Genmab The company’s stock has doubled in three months following the success of a series of major cancer drug trials, giving the company new momentum in its efforts to tighten control over the drugs it develops and sells.
The roughly $35 billion company’s stock soared 48% last week, including a 29% jump in one session after strong results for its experimental head and neck cancer drug petosemtamab. The announcement marks the third success in a Phase 3 trial conducted by Genmab in October, following positive results for treatments targeting ovarian cancer and lymphoma.
After spending nearly three decades building Genmab into one of Europe’s leading biotech companies, CEO Jan van de Winkel told CNBC on Friday that the breakthrough marks a “completely new era.”
Historically, Genmab earned its income from royalties on the drugs it helped develop. johnson & johnson Multiple myeloma treatment Darzalex and NovartisKesimpta. Van de Winkel said Johnson & Johnson expects sales of Darzalex to be between $16.5 billion and $16.9 billion this year, and Genmab will receive up to a 20% royalty.
Genmab is now using its financial strength to build a business that retains a larger share of the revenue from its treatments.
cancer breakthrough
The biggest market reaction was for petosemtamab and Merckx In a phase 3 trial in patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancer, Keytruda reduced the risk of death by 50% compared to Keytruda alone.
Genmab said the combination also significantly improved response rates and showed no new safety signals.
Van de Winkel told CNBC that the combination “could set a whole new standard” for treatment, but declined to say whether the survival data would hold up as the data matured, citing the complete data, which has not yet been published.
A few days earlier, Genmab reported that its drug Rina-S reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 71% and reduced the risk of death by 57% compared to chemotherapy in a Phase 3 trial in ovarian cancer.
Barclays analysts said the results beat investors’ expectations and suggested Linaesu could offer an alternative to patients who don’t qualify for treatment. AbbVie Patients who are receiving treatments that compete with Elahere or whose cancer progresses after receiving Elahere treatment. However, the researchers cautioned that comparisons between trials had limitations.
Genmab’s stock price has nearly doubled in the past three months.
The third victory in late October was for Epkinly, co-developed with AbbVie, which reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 51% when used in combination with standard chemotherapy in previously untreated diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
Analysts believe petosemtamab has significant commercial potential beyond its original target market.
Jefferies analysts estimate that the drug could generate $3.5 billion in peak annual global sales if it treats recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancer, with expansion into locally advanced disease adding another $3.5 billion, an opportunity they believe investors have not yet fully appreciated.
Van de Winkel did not provide specific numbers, but said he expected petosemtamab to become a “multi-billion dollar drug.”
Genmab is scheduled to announce its third quarter results on November 5th.
antibody specialist
Genmab has built its business around antibody-based medicines, including so-called bispecific antibodies such as petosemtamab, which can bind to two different targets on cancer cells simultaneously.
Petosemtamab is designed to target the proteins EGFR and LGR5, interfering with signals that help cancer cells grow and prompting the immune system to attack tumors.
Van de Winkel said Genmab’s expertise in antibodies and their interaction with the immune system is also helping discover promising medicines developed by other companies. The company acquired Petosemtamab through its $8 billion acquisition of Merus in 2025, and Rina-S through its $1.8 billion acquisition of Profound Bio in 2024.
These deals are also central to Genmab’s changing business model.
While the company wholly owns Petsemtab and RinaS, it splits Epkinley’s commercial economy evenly with AbbVie, which has a much larger stake than Johnson & Johnson or Novartis.
“Going forward, I intend to increasingly retain ownership of these new medicines,” Van de Winkel said.
Genmab currently has 15 Phase 3 trials across three lead compounds.
“The models are starting to be validated and starting to work well together,” he said. “I think the market finally understands at this point.”
Mers’ contract underscores the scale of the gamble. Genmab borrowed $5.5 billion to finance the purchase and relied on royalty income to provide financial support if Petcemtab failed.
new chapter
Owning more drugs also means taking on the job of selling more drugs. Van de Winkel said the company already has much of the necessary infrastructure in place and is building commercial capabilities around existing treatments co-developed with Epkinley and Tivdak. pfizer.
The company aims to expand its sales presence in Europe and reach more cancer patients in the United States through community care beyond specialty hospitals.
Van de Winkel said he wants Genmab’s majority-owned drug to reach about 500,000 patients by the 2030s, up from less than 30,000 today.
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He also acknowledged potential interest from big pharma companies, saying Genmab is probably “high on the radar screen,” but stressed that the ambition to build an independent European biotech remains.
However, greater ownership also means shouldering more of the costs and risks of clinical trials, regulatory approvals, and commercialization.
Van de Winkel acknowledged that geopolitical changes and drug price pressures could complicate expansion plans and change the order in which Genmab launches drugs in different markets.
