A tale of two ASCOs: Nektar gains on durability of complete response rate for NKTR-214 combo

After going into ASCO with its valuation roughly half what it was before last year’s meeting kicked off, Nektar gained almost $500 million in market cap on Monday after reporting updated data showing that bempegaldesleukin (NKTR-214) plus anti-PD-1 mAb Opdivo nivolumab continued to increase the complete response rate among previously untreated metastatic stage IV melanoma patients. The company said the data reinforce that the combination can provide "both deepening and durability of response over time."

Shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) gained $2.74 to $34.06 on Monday...