Vision & Eye Care

The European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has recommended approval of Roche's Susvimo for the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration. Susvimo is the first continuous delivery treatment that offers an alternative to standard-of-care eye injections, using the Contivue refillable implant to deliver a customized formulation of ranibizumab with as few as two treatments per year. The positive recommendation is based on data from the LADDER, Archway, and Portal studies showing Susvimo maintained vision equivalent to monthly intravitreal ranibizumab injections, with longer-term data supporting maintenance of vision up to seven years. A final decision from the European Commission is expected in the near future. Neovascular age-related macular degeneration affects 1.7 million people in the European Union and is a leading cause of blindness in people over 60.

SpaceX's stock is unlikely to double anytime soon due to its premium valuation and near-term insider selling risks, but three other stocks have realistic paths to doubling relatively quickly. ADMA Biologics is already profitable, with first-quarter net income of $407 million, up 22% year over year, and analysts' consensus 12-month price target is almost exactly double its current share price. EyePoint Pharmaceuticals expects top-line results from two late-stage studies of Duravyu for wet age-related macular degeneration any day now, targeting a combined global market opportunity of over $15 billion, and its consensus 12-month price target is 165% higher than the current share price. Viking Therapeutics is advancing its obesity candidate VK2735 in Phase 3 trials and plans to begin another late-stage study of oral VK2735 in the fourth quarter of 2026, with an average price target 146% above its current share price.

Concorde Career Colleges has launched 12 additional healthcare training programs across campuses in California, Florida, Missouri and Texas. The new offerings span five specialties: dental assistant, diagnostic medical sonography, pharmacy technician, radiologic technology and surgical technology. The expansion is part of parent company Universal Technical Institute's multi-year North Star strategy, which aims to launch 10 to 20 new programs annually at existing campuses through 2029. More than half of the spring launches are in radiologic technology and sonography, fields where the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects national employment growth of 5% and 13% respectively from 2024 to 2034. In the four states where the programs are being offered, projected growth for radiologic technologists ranges from 8% to 19% through 2032, while diagnostic medical sonography employment in California is expected to rise by 24%.