November 17th, 2025 | 07:10 CET
Out of BioNTech? Into Evotec and Vidac shares? What is going on with Johnson & Johnson?
Big news in biotech: Pfizer is selling its entire stake in German biotech champion BioNTech. Should investors consider doing the same? Meanwhile, Vidac Pharma is providing more and more reasons for a price explosion. The Company is developing a novel cancer therapy and has received approval to begin phase 2 clinical trials in Germany. It is also reportedly in talks with Johnson & Johnson. Might the pharmaceutical giant even make a move? Evotec, on the other hand, has recently sent mixed signals. Another milestone payment is ringing the cash register, and insider transactions are drawing attention. Yet the stock is trading at a multi-year low.
time to read: 3 minutes
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Author:
Fabian Lorenz
ISIN:
BIONTECH SE SPON. ADRS 1 | US09075V1026 , EVOTEC SE INH O.N. | DE0005664809 , VIDAC PHARMA HOLDING PLC | GB00BM9XQ619
Table of contents:
"[...] Defence will continue to develop its Antibody Drug Conjugates "ADC" and its radiopharmaceuticals programs, which are currently two of the hottest products in demand in the pharma industries where significant consolidations and take-overs occurred. [...]" Sébastien Plouffe, CEO, Founder and Director, Defence Therapeutics Inc.
Author
Fabian Lorenz
For more than twenty years, the Cologne native has been intensively involved with the stock market, both professionally and privately. He is particularly passionate about national and international small and micro caps.
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Vidac Pharma: Partnership with Johnson & Johnson?
Could Vidac Pharma's share price multiply? Analysts at Sphene Capital are convinced it could. They believe Vidac shares could reach a price of EUR 4.30. The share price is currently trading at EUR 0.52. And there are good reasons for the analysts' optimism. Vidac is working on a novel approach to cancer therapy, and its progress is increasing the likelihood that the Company could become a takeover candidate.
Vidac Pharma has developed novel molecules designed to reverse the Warburg effect, a key metabolic feature of tumor cells. This completely new mode of action could lead to a new cancer therapy. Vidac recently received the green light from German authorities to begin a Phase 2 clinical trial. This is a significant step toward expanding the development program for skin cancer therapies in Europe. The trial, which was approved following an update to the EU-wide Clinical Trials Information System (CTIS), targets highly proliferative actinic keratoses (precancerous skin lesions) that can develop into malignant tumors. Vidac CTO Dr. Eyal Breitbart emphasized that this is the first trial explicitly targeting these particularly aggressive forms of AK.
With its completely new approach to fighting cancer and the planned Phase 2 trial, Vidac is becoming increasingly attractive for large pharmaceutical companies. In this context, it is exciting to note that Vidac will be meeting with Johnson & Johnson next week. The one-on-one meeting is set to take place during the "Beyond the Needle: Building the Future of Intratumoral Oncology" conference in Basel. Discussions will center on innovations in intratumoral oncology and explore possible avenues for collaboration on developing new therapeutic approaches.
Evotec: Million-dollar payment and insider transactions
Evotec has demonstrated this year how important collaborations with Big Pharma are for research-based biotech companies. Most recently, the Company received USD 5 million from Bristol Myers Squibb. The two companies have been collaborating in the field of protein degradation since 2018. The payment was triggered after an IND application was approved by the US FDA. Specifically, it concerns the Cereblon E3 ligase modulator ("CELMoD"). The Phase 1 clinical trial is expected to begin in 2026. In total, Evotec has received milestone payments of USD 105 million from Bristol Myers Squibb this year alone.
On Thursday, the biotech company reported two insider transactions. Supervisory Board member Wesley Wheeler purchased Evotec shares worth USD 31,370 in an off-market transaction. Evotec CEO Cord Dohrmann, on the other hand, sold shares worth EUR 110,520.
The Evotec share price showed little reaction to the news. Over the past week, the share has recorded a slight decline. At EUR 5.30, the biotech company's stock continues to trade at a multi-year low.
BioNTech: Pfizer cashes in
BioNTech shares have fallen just over 10% since Wednesday. The trigger for the slide was a report by Bloomberg stating that Pfizer intends to sell its entire stake of 4.55 million BioNTech shares, with US bank JPMorgan handling the transaction. The sale could generate around USD 500 million for Pfizer. BioNTech and Pfizer jointly developed the successful coronavirus vaccine.
Pfizer could put the money to good use. After all, the Company has just won the bidding war against Novo Nordisk to acquire the biotech company Metsera. On Thursday, Metsera shareholders approved the deal. Now Pfizer has to put up to USD 10 billion on the table.
The biotech sector remains hot. The takeover battle between Pfizer and Novo Nordisk shows that Big Pharma is willing to dig deep for innovation. Vidac Pharma could soon benefit from this as well. If a partnership with Johnson & Johnson materializes, the share price should surge to a new all-time high. Buying Evotec shares does not seem compelling at present. BioNTech remains a core investment. Pfizer's sale should not be overinterpreted.
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