Biotech Stock Pops on Reaction to Experimental Therapy

Iovance Biotherapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:IOVA) was last seen up 2.4% at $7.42, after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said a late-stage study of its experimental lung cancer therapy, LN-145 TIL, could be acceptable for accelerated approval.

The equity is bouncing off a floor at the $6.80 level, after pulling back from its highest level in 2023 near the $9 region. Today's price action has placed the shares back above the 60-day moving average, which had recently emerged as pressure. Year-over-year, IOVA is down over 42%.

Short sellers have been piling on Iovance Biotherapeutics stock of late, with short interest up 18.4% in the most recent reporting period. The 25.62 million shares sold short account for 12.3% of IOVA's available float, or nearly one week's worth of pent-up buying power.

Premiums are reasonably priced at the moment. This is per the security's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) reading of 78%, which sits in the relatively low 12th percentile of its annual range, suggesting options  traders are currently pricing in lower-than-usual volatility expectations.