Capitalizing on Cometriq

After a spate of setbacks since a drastic restructuring five years ago, Exelixis Inc.'s singular focus on Cometriq cabozantinib finally may pay dividends. Positive Phase III data for the cancer drug drove the value of the company over $1 billion for the first time in 15 months and Exelixis promptly tapped the markets to expand its commercial efforts and support additional indications to ensure it stays on an upward trajectory.

Exelixis rose $1.97 (50%) to $5.88 on July 21 after Cometriq met the primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS) in the Phase III METEOR trial in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients whose disease had progressed after treatment with a VEGF receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI). The move helped the stock complete its rebound from an all-time low late last year and pushed the company's market cap to $1.2 billion. ...