Anavex Stock Price Crash: A Fault By Trial Design?

Anavex had been pursuing a heavy stock-promoting campaign since November 2015, creating a hype around its potential Alzheimer's therapy, but mixed Phase IIa results in a small number of patients caused investors to back off this week, with the New York-based biotech dropping from a steady price of $7.3 at the start of the week to a close of just $3.5 per share on July 28 (NASDAQ).

The sharp decline prompted Anavex to put out another press release on July 29, following from its initial data release on July 27, confirming the "positive" data for ANAVEX 2-73. The second press release highlights that the Phase IIa study was a first in Alzheimer’s patients trial focused on testing safety of ANAVEX 2-73