FDA Delivers Another Blow to Solid Biosciences Stock

This is the second time a trial for the therapy has been placed on clinical hold in 2019

The worst stock on the Nasdaq this morning is Solid Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ:SLDB), down 69.2% to trade at $3.39, and earlier hitting a new record low of $3.15. This comes after a trial for the drugmaker's therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy was put on clinical hold by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This is the second time the FDA has put a hold on the treatment due to serious side effects.

This is pacing to be SLDB's worse single-session percentage drop ever, surpassing the 67.8% bear gap from February when the FDA placed its first clinical hold. Prior to today, the shares had traded in a tight range between the $7-$12 levels for the past six months.

Despite these struggles, half of analysts remain confident in their "strong buy" ratings. But the security is certainly vulnerable to bear notes now, considering its consensus 12-month price target of $12.38 was a 10% premium to last night's closing perch at $11.

Options traders are firmly entrenched in calls, albeit amid limited absolute volume. In the last 10 days, 260 calls were bought to open at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), compared to 12 puts. However, given how short interest accounts for a healthy 12.3% of SLDB's total available float, it's possible some of these calls could be shorts seeking an options hedge against any unexpected upside.