Titan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTC:TTNP) Gets Positive Vote, Approval Still Pending
The fortunes of Titan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTC:TTNP) may turn, as the FDA reversed its stance on the latest addiction treatment proposed by the company. At the beginning of the week, the TTNP stock retreated sharply as the agency stated the test showed insufficient results. A later discussion, however, led to upcoming approval for the treatment, but the damage came fast after the FDA published the negative opinion on its site, and investors continued to shed stocks on Thursday after a day of tentative buying on Wednesday. 
Still, the final decision will be delivered on April 30th, and so far the positive vote comes with several expert opinions that put a question on the treatment. The agency usually takes the vote into consideration, but is not obliged to do so.
TTNP has several already marketed treatment varieties with patents good for years ahead. The latest addition to the drug portfolio may improve on the current financial situation:
- $18 million cash
- $21.3 total current liabilities
- $4.7 million royalty revenue
- $15 million net loss
What will transpire in the future, however, has little to do with sentiment returning to investors, as TTNP spent two nerve-wracking days between an FDA review that sounded unfavorable and the actual voting on therapy approval. We are yet to see if the 10 for and 4 against votes will be inspiring enough for TTNP to resume its climbing trend. So far, despite yesterday’s high selling volumes, the ticker managed to hang onto the $1.23 position.
Currently, there are no paid promotions to additionally cause disproportionate movements in the TTNP stock. But too much belief in a wonder drug was certainly there, from the end of October onward. The start of an FDA procedure is a pregnant time for a pharmaceutical company, one in which its stock may gain from positive sentiment, but also suffer badly on any negative news. So far, the news for TTNP has been mixed, and the positive vote is far from the last hurdle.
According to experts of the FDA panel, the therapy still has weaknesses such as determining the optimal dose and installing the delayed delivery system, which would demand training surgical experts in just the right technique. So at least for a month more, TTNP will remain a closely watched ticker for its ability to react to news suddenly. On the positive side, the company already has shown the safety and effectiveness of its buprenorphine pill application. On the negative one, experts compare the prolonged-delivery system to that of contraceptive Norplant, which was pulled from the market because of difficulties with implantation and removal. TTNP may also benefit from FDA’s idea to fast-track therapies that may address social problems such as opioid addiction.
