This week in charts: ESMO’s winners and losers

An article from This week in charts: ESMO’s winners and losers The latest installment in BioPharma Dive’s visualization-focused series looks at Wall Street’s response to a trio of closely watched presentations at a top meeting for cancer drugs. Published Oct. 30, 2026 Jonathan Gardner Senior Reporter Share Copy link Email LinkedIn X/Twitter Facebook Print License Add us on Google This is the latest installment in a new series where BioPharma Dive uses data visualization to recap what’s going on across the industry.

Today, we’re looking at how investors reacted to new data presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology meeting. Moderna and Merck & Co. are developing one of the most closely watched cancer drugs in years, a type of cancer vaccine known as an “individualized neoantigen therapy” and that the companies view as potentially useful across several different tumor types.

The success of this vaccine, “intismeran autogene,” in a late-stage trial in melanoma in August was hailed by scientists as a landmark moment in cancer research — proof that a vaccine could help prevent relapses when paired with the immune-boosting treatment Keytruda after surgery. Moderna’s shares skyrocketed afterward, setting the stage for an eagerly anticipated presentation at ESMO. The details Moderna and Merck presented at the end of last week appeared to meet Wall Street’s sky-high expectations.

Still, Moderna shares sold off by double digits. Investors aren’t yet sure about the vaccine’s chances against other tumors, as well as the commercial outlook for a treatment produced through a complicated, personalized manufacturing process. They want to see more study results before they’re convinced intismeran can be a Keytruda-esque megablockbuster, rather than simply “a highly effective treatment option in melanoma,” William Blair analyst Myles Minter wrote in a client note.

Moderna’s data were to be disclosed on Oct. 24, but the details were leaked two days earlier. Moderna slumps on eagerly anticipated cancer vaccine data The biotech’s stock price fell by double digits during ESMO.

Tango Therapeutics similarly went into ESMO with positive data in hand. The company was running a trial pairing its experimental drug vopimetostat with Revolution Medicines’ Rasonque in certain pancreatic cancer patients. The results were applauded by analysts.

When used in second or third line settings in patients with certain mutations, the regimen stimulated responses in 82% of patients. Additionally, 88% of those who got it were alive and free of disease progression after nine months. The company’s share price fell throughout the conference, however.

Some investors may have been looking for a higher response rate, wrote Stifel analyst Laura Prendergast. And alongside the results, the company simultaneously announced plans to lay off 14% of its workforce, cease preclinical research and focus on more advanced prospects, a decision that may have been “misinterpreted,” Prendergast wrote. Leerink Partners analyst Andrew Berens also noted that other presentations at ESMO suggested there’s increased competition for the kind of drug Tango is developing.

Questions about the relationship between Tango and Revolution pressured shares too, Berens added. Tango tumbled despite revealing positive data in pancreatic cancer Company shares fell about 20% following the ESMO presentation. Xencor fared better during the meeting.

The company presented early-stage data for a double-barreled antibody drug, “XmAb819,” that it’s developing for kidney cancer. The highest dose tested was associated with a 46% response rate in people whose disease had progressed despite several previous treatments. The data “exceeded the bar” on efficacy going into the presentation, and suggested that XmAb819 “looks more efficacious than other drugs in late-line studies,” wrote RBC Capital Markets analyst Leonid Timashev.

Xencor zoomed on early promise for a kidney cancer drug The results made Xencor one of ESMO’s top winners on Wall Street. In a separate note, Leerink’s Daina Graybosch added that Xencor’s presentation was seen by many investors as one of the meeting’s “best datasets.” The main reservation some have is the chance that side effects may limit its upside, Graybosch wrote. The company is planning a Phase 3 trial in third-line patients using Aveo Oncology’s Fotivda as a comparator.

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