Why Is Alaunos Therapeutics Sinking Today?

Alaunos Therapeutics Inc TCRT announced a strategic reprioritization to focus on its hunTR TCR discovery platform, wind down its TCR-T Phase 1/2 Library trial, and explore broad strategic alternatives for the company. 

Alaunos is implementing a cost-saving plan that includes a reduction in workforce by approximately 60%.

Alaunos has decided to wind down its TCR-T Library Phase 1/2 trial and prioritize the hunTR platform to explore potential partnering opportunities. 

Concurrently, the company is exploring strategic alternatives and has engaged Cantor Fitzgerald & Co as a strategic advisor for this process. 

Alaunos has discovered multiple proprietary TCRs targeting driver mutations through its hunTR TCR discovery platform. 

The hunTR platform can rapidly interrogate T-cell responses and has the potential to expand to multiple targets or cancer indications. 

Using hunTR, the company has demonstrated the ability to isolate neoantigen-specific TCRs from tumor resident T-cells. 

The presence of these driver mutation-specific T-cells in the tumor potentially validates the mutated target's relevance and the TCR's safety for use in other cancer patients expressing the same neoantigen.

As of June 30, 2023, Alaunos had approximately $18.3 million in cash balances. The company expects sufficient cash resources to fund operations into Q4 of 2023.

Price Action: TCRT shares are down 64.6% at $0.14 on the last check Tuesday.