NKGen Biotech appoints new director and committee member

Santa Ana, CA-based NKGen Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ:NKGN), a company in the biological products industry, announced on Thursday the appointment of Dr. Marco Gottardis as a new board member and committee participant, following the resignation of Ms. Alana McNulty earlier this year.

Dr. Gottardis, who has been serving as a consultant at Gottardis Biotech LLC since February 2023, brings a wealth of experience from the biopharmaceutical sector, including previous roles at Replay Bio Holdings and Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) subsidiary. With a strong background in oncology research and development, Dr. Gottardis is expected to contribute significantly to the company's strategic direction.

Effective immediately, Dr. Gottardis will fill the Class I director vacancy on the Board and will serve on the Audit Committee, Compensation Committee, and Nomination and Corporate Governance Committee. His term as a Class I director will last until the earlier of the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders and until his successor is duly elected and qualified, or until his earlier death, resignation, or removal.

In line with NKGen Biotech's compensation program for non-employee directors, Dr. Gottardis will receive an annual retainer and additional fees for his committee roles. Additionally, he was granted a sign-on option award to purchase 300,000 shares of NKGen Biotech's common stock at an exercise price of $2.00 per share, vesting over three years, contingent upon continued service.

The company's decision to appoint Dr. Gottardis was unanimous and comes after Ms. McNulty's departure on February 4, 2024. NKGen Biotech has entered into a standard indemnification agreement with Dr. Gottardis, ensuring alignment with the company's governance practices.

This move is part of NKGen Biotech's ongoing efforts to strengthen its leadership and governance structures to support its growth and development in the biopharmaceutical industry.

The information provided in this article is based on a press release statement.

In other recent news, NKGen Biotech, a clinical-stage biotech company, has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to proceed with its Investigational New Drug (IND) application for SNK01, a natural killer (NK) cell therapy aimed at treating Parkinson’s disease.

The FDA's approval allows the company to initiate its Phase 1/2a clinical trial, which is expected to commence in the second half of 2024. This trial will explore the safety, tolerability, and preliminary effectiveness of SNK01 in patients with Parkinson's disease.

The study is designed to include up to 30 participants, with 20 patients receiving the investigational therapy and 10 receiving a placebo. NKGen's Chairman and CEO, Dr. Paul Y. Song, highlighted the promising results from earlier Phase 1 trials in Alzheimer's disease, where SNK01 showed a reduction in neuroinflammation. This has fostered the company's optimism for the therapy's potential in Parkinson's disease.

SNK01 is an autologous, non-genetically modified NK cell product with enhanced cytotoxicity and activating receptor expression. It represents a novel strategy in the fight against Parkinson's disease by potentially addressing protein deposition and neuroinflammation, common pathological features in various neurodegenerative disorders.

These are the latest developments from NKGen Biotech.

InvestingPro Insights

In light of Dr. Marco Gottardis's appointment to the board of NKGen Biotech Inc., investors need to consider the company's current financial health and market performance. NKGen Biotech, with a market capitalization of $25.88 million, has faced significant challenges as reflected in the stock's recent performance. The InvestingPro Data indicates a 1-week price total return of -22.39% and a staggering 1-year price total return of -90.02%, underscoring the stock's high volatility and the downward trend it has experienced over the past year.

Adding to the concerns, the company's financial metrics reveal a negative P/E ratio of -0.32 and an EBITDA of -$29.38 million for the last twelve months as of Q1 2024, indicating that the company is not currently profitable. Additionally, the InvestingPro Fair Value is assessed at $0.79, which is below the previous closing price of $1.04, suggesting that the stock might be overvalued at its current level.

Investors looking for more in-depth analysis, including additional InvestingPro Tips such as the stock's weak gross profit margins and its liquidity issues, can find further guidance on https://www.investing.com/pro/NKGN. There are 9 more InvestingPro Tips available, offering valuable insights for those considering an investment in NKGen Biotech. For those interested in a subscription, use coupon code PRONEWS24 to get up to 10% off a yearly Pro and a yearly or biyearly Pro+ subscription.

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