New York, Feb 2, 2026, 11:40 (EST) — Regular session
- Shares of Alumis climbed roughly 6.7%, hitting $26.15 by midday
- Biotech benchmarks climbed, boosting risk appetite among small-cap drugmakers
- Traders await the upcoming quarterly update, looking for any clues on the psoriasis filing timeline
Alumis shares jumped roughly 6.7% to $26.15 on Monday, continuing the biotech’s recent volatility. The stock moved between $24.14 and $27.12, with trading volume hitting around 530,000 shares by late morning. Biotech ETFs also posted gains.
This shift is significant since Alumis has turned into a key gauge for risk-on biotech plays: late-stage data, wide daily swings, and investors ready to jump in or pull out fast. Stocks like these can see sharp repricing on minor sentiment shifts, especially as the wider biotech market strengthens.
This also sharpens the debate over how much of the buying stems from fundamentals versus market flow. The company remains in clinical development, meaning short-term moves hinge on trial durability, regulatory milestones, and whether management secures a partner before scaling up a larger launch effort.
Alumis, headquartered in South San Francisco, announced in January that it completed an upsized public offering of 20,297,500 shares at $17.00 each, raising roughly $345.1 million before expenses. The company also highlighted its pipeline, featuring oral TYK2 inhibitors like envudeucitinib (known as “envu,” previously ESK-001) and a CNS-penetrant project, A-005. (Nasdaq)
The stock’s surge dates back to January 6, after the company announced that its experimental drug envudeucitinib met the primary endpoint in two late-stage trials for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Around 65% of patients showed at least a 90% improvement in symptoms by 24 weeks, with over 40% achieving complete clearance, the company reported. Eric Schmidt of Cantor Fitzgerald described the results as “stronger than expected” at the time. CEO Martin Babler noted there “should be interest for this asset from potential strategic partners.” Alumis aims to file for U.S. approval in the second half of 2026, setting up a clash with Bristol Myers Squibb’s Sotyktu, a competing drug from the same class. (A TYK2 inhibitor blocks tyrosine kinase 2, a protein linked to immune signaling and inflammation.) (Reuters)
Monday’s rally didn’t follow any fresh company news. It felt more like a typical move when biotech indexes strengthen and traders shift back into high-beta stocks known for their swift swings.
The setup works both ways. Clinical-stage drugmakers risk sharp drops if safety concerns arise, adoption falls short, or regulators get stricter. And when a stock has already surged, there’s little slack for mistakes or a dilutive new financing round.
Investors are now turning their attention to Alumis’s upcoming financial update, watching closely for details on cash runway and filing timelines. According to Nasdaq data, the company is expected to report earnings around March 18. (Nasdaq)
