Ocugen Reverses Course From Monday's Massive Surge As COVID-19 Vaccine Partner Faces WHO Setback

Shares of biopharmaceutical company Ocugen Inc. OCGN fell 2% in Tuesday’s regular trading session after seeing strong gains on Monday.

What Happened: Ocugen’s stock fell more than 2% to $9.15 in Tuesday’s trading on disappointing news related to Covaxin, the COVID-19 vaccine of Ocugen’s partner, India-based Bharat Biotech.

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) technical advisory group on Tuesday sought “additional clarifications” from Bharat Biotech to conduct a final “risk-benefit assessment” before the vaccine’s approval for emergency use listing, the Times of India newspaper reported.

The WHO also reportedly said its technical advisory group expects to receive these clarifications from Bharat Biotech by the end of this week and meet on Nov. 3 for a final assessment.

Why It Matters: Ocugen, one of the most-discussed stocks on Reddit’s r/WallStreetBets forum, is partnered with Bharat Biotech for the commercialization of Covaxin in the United States and Canada.

The WHO approval would enable the vaccine to be administered in low- and middle-income countries under the COVAX facility and also allow people inoculated with the vaccine to travel to other countries without restrictions.

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