Martin Shkreli Takes Aim At Capricor — Stock Sinks

Shares of Capricor Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAPR) plummeted Monday due to a short call from controversial former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli.

• CAPR stock is plunging. See the real-time price action here. 

"HOPE-3, aka COPE-3"

Shkreli publicly identified Capricor as a short target in a social media post. He expressed skepticism about the company’s cell therapy approach and its clinical trial data for its lead candidate, deramiocel. 

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"In the next, few days the HOPE-3 (aka COPE-3) study will report its data. It will not work. This is the company’s only asset," Shkreli said. 

He claimed the treatment faces challenges, including difficulties with cell trafficking, and raised concerns about potential safety issues with the donor heart-derived cells.

Benzinga reached out to Capricor for comment but did not receive a response before publication.

Shkreli predicted the stock would settle at approximately $2 per share, a significant drop from its current level. The stock plunged over 17% following the critical commentary, according to Benzinga Pro. 

What Else: Also on Monday, Capricor unveiled a scalable framework for loading therapeutic oligonucleotides into exosomes.

Management believes the approach could provide a practical pathway to manufacture clinically relevant quantities of loaded exosomes, a key hurdle for advancing the platform into later-stage trials.

Chief Executive Linda Marbán said the findings underscore the strength and versatility of Capricor’s exosome technology and its potential to support a broad range of diseases.

CAPR Price Action: According to data from Benzinga Pro, Capricor shares were down 17.39% at $4.75 at the time of publication Monday. 

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