MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD)
MannKind Corporation worked into the green while the rest of the market seemed to have fallen in the red on Friday. The gains were the result of a collaboration the company had entered into with regard to type 1 diabetes. Today, we'll talk about the collaboration, how the market reacted to the news, and what we can expect to see from MNKD moving forward. So, let's get right to it...
MNKD Enters Collaboration With JDRF
As mentioned above, while the rest of the market had a rough day yesterday, MannKind worked its way to the green after announcing a collaboration with JDRF. JDRF, a foundation that was previously known as the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, is a global organization focused on funding research into the treatment of and cure for type 1 diabetes. This collaboration will combine MannKind's active participation in diabetes research and development with JDRF's significant scientific and human resources. The ultimate goal will be to advanced new treatments and therapies in areas to help transform the lives of consumers living with diabetes. One of the primary focus points of the collaboration will be the use of MannKind's Afrezza in the pediatric population. In a statement, Dr. Ray Urbanski, Chief Medical Officer at MNKD, had the following to offer:
“We are excited to be working with JDRF and the leading scientific experts, community physicians and people with diabetes that are associated with this organization... We have already begun to evaluate Afrezza for use in the pediatric population and we look forward to working with JDRF to advance our mutual interests in advancing therapies for all people with type 1 diabetes.”
The above statement was followed up by Aaron Kowalski, PhD., JDRF Mission Officer and VP of Research. Here's what he had to say:
“JDRF is pleased to partner with MannKind to explore opportunities to help facilitate making Afrezza more broadly available to the T1D community interested in benefiting from this important therapeutic... MannKind is a fantastic organization focused on addressing the needs of people living with T1D and we look forward to collaborating and continuing to drive research to improve the lives of people with type 1 diabetes.”
How The Market Reacted To The News
As investors, one of the first things that we learn is that the news moves the market. Any time there is positive news released with regard to a publicly-traded company, we can expect to see gains in the value of the company as a result. Adversely, when negative news is released, we can expect declines. The news released with regard to MNKD was overwhelmingly positive. As a result, we saw positive movement in the market yesterday, on a day when most stocks were falling into the red. Currently, in after hours trading, the stock is trading at $1.02 per share after a gain of $0.02 per share, or 1.98%.
What We Can Expect To See Moving Forward
Moving forward, I have a relatively bullish opinion of what we can expect to see from MannKind. While the stock has been hurt by poor Afrezza sales, I believe that the new collaboration will likely lead to stronger sales volume. It is also likely that the collaboration may lead to new products and further indications for technosphere and Afrezza. While the gains may take a while to come to fruition, it seems as though this one is going to climb in the long run.