XENON PHARMACEUTICALS

RBC Capital maintained its Outperform rating on Xenon Pharmaceuticals and increased its price target from $55 to $57 following analysis of Phase II to Phase III translatability for epilepsy medications.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals has appointed Darren Cline as Chief Commercial Officer to lead commercial strategy for azetukalner, the company's lead Phase 3 candidate targeting epilepsy, major depressive disorder, and bipolar depression.

• Pharmaceutical companies warn in SEC filings that Trump administration's FDA staffing and budget cuts could significantly delay or halt new drug approvals and commercialization processes. • Recent layoffs of hundreds of FDA employees have sparked industry-wide concerns about disruptions to clinical trials, grant applications, and regulatory oversight activities. • Multiple biotech firms, including Xenon Pharmaceuticals and Rezolute, report that reduced FDA capacity could negatively impact their drug development timelines and business operations.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals' azetukalner demonstrates sustained reduction in seizure frequency and impressive seizure freedom rates in patients with focal onset seizures.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals is progressing its Phase 3 epilepsy program with azetukalner, anticipating topline data from the X-TOLE2 study in the second half of 2025.

Over 90 epilepsy treatment therapies are under development by more than 75 companies globally, targeting various mechanisms of action and routes of administration.