One-glance verdict
Not enough data
Fair value unavailable
Not enough cash-flow history to value this one with our method.
Fundamentals snapshot
Candel Therapeutics, Inc.
CADL · NGM · Healthcare · Biotechnology
Current price
$8.91
52-week range
$4.35 - $14.00
Market cap
$681.78M
Balance sheet
Healthy
-22.74x Concerning
Net cash $152.05M. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
0 Rewards
1 Risk
0 rewards · 1 risks
View details ↓What this company does
Candel Therapeutics, Inc.
Candel Therapeutics is a drug company trying to create new cancer treatments that help the body's own immune system fight tumors. Their main hope is for drugs like CAN-2409 which are currently being tested in people with prostate and lung cancer, and they are also working on a platform to discover even more potential treatments. Success in these clinical trials is crucial because it could lead to new medicines and future sales for the company.
How the company got here
Candel Therapeutics, originally founded as Advantagene in 2003, has evolved into a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative cancer immunotherapies. The company's journey involved a significant rebranding and name change to Candel Therapeutics in November 2020, following the combination of its predecessor company with assets from Periphagen, Inc. This strategic move aimed to solidify its focus on developing novel viral immunotherapy platforms. Candel's history is rooted in building a strong scientific foundation for its lead product candidates, CAN-2409 and CAN-3110, which are now progressing through various stages of clinical trials. The company became publicly traded in August 2021, marking a new chapter in its growth and development.
What it actually does
Candel Therapeutics develops and researches advanced cancer treatments called viral immunotherapies. These therapies use specially engineered viruses, like modified adenoviruses and herpes simplex viruses, to train a patient's own immune system to recognize and fight cancer cells. The core idea is to inject these therapeutic viruses directly into tumors. This process aims to kill cancer cells, release signals that attract immune cells, and essentially turn the tumor site into a training ground for the immune system to attack cancer throughout the body, including any hidden or distant cancer cells.
Adenovirus Platform (CAN-2409)
This is Candel's primary focus, centered around a product candidate called CAN-2409. It's an engineered adenovirus (a common type of virus that can cause colds) that's designed to be injected directly into a tumor. Once inside, it works with an oral medication (a prodrug) to trigger cancer cells to die in a way that alerts the immune system. This platform is being investigated for various cancers, with a particular emphasis on localized prostate cancer, and is also being studied for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The goal is to use this therapy alongside existing treatments like radiation to improve patient outcomes.
HSV Platform (CAN-3110)
This business line utilizes an engineered herpes simplex virus (HSV), the virus that causes cold sores, as a therapeutic agent. The product candidate, CAN-3110, is designed for direct injection into brain tumors, specifically for recurrent high-grade glioma. The engineered HSV aims to activate the immune system within the brain to fight the cancer. This platform is in earlier stages of clinical development compared to the adenovirus platform, with ongoing Phase Ib trials.
enLIGHTEN Discovery Platform
This is Candel's research and development engine, focused on discovering new viral immunotherapy candidates. It's a systematic process that uses human biology and advanced data analysis, specifically leveraging herpes simplex virus technology. The platform's goal is to create novel viral therapies tailored to different types of solid tumors, essentially acting as a discovery tool to expand the company's pipeline of potential cancer treatments.
What management is betting on now
Candel's current strategy heavily relies on advancing its lead product candidate, CAN-2409, through late-stage clinical trials, particularly for prostate cancer and non-small cell lung cancer. Management is focused on generating key clinical data readouts, including survival data, which are crucial for potential regulatory approval and future commercialization. They are also prioritizing operational efficiency and exploring strategic partnerships for later stages of development and market launch. The company is also investing in its enLIGHTEN Discovery Platform to identify and develop next-generation immunotherapies.
Price history
How the share price has moved
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Earnings history
Last 8 quarters — what happened
Click any quarter to read the call summary and what the numbers say.
FY2024 Q3
$-6.57M
FY2024 Q4
$-5.82M
FY2025 Q1
$-8.62M
FY2025 Q2
$-8.92M
FY2025 Q3
$-10.38M
FY2025 Q4
$-10.98M
FY2026 Q1
$-18.71M
FY2026 Q2
$-17.25M
Revenue
—
Net income
$-38.91M
Diluted EPS
-0.52
Operating cash flow
$-17.18M
Free cash flow
$-17.25M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$-8.86M
Diluted EPS
-0.14
Operating cash flow
$-18.04M
Free cash flow
$-18.71M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$-29.50M
Diluted EPS
-0.55
Operating cash flow
$-10.57M
Free cash flow
$-10.98M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$-11.27M
Diluted EPS
-0.21
Operating cash flow
$-10.24M
Free cash flow
$-10.38M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$-4.80M
Diluted EPS
-0.09
Operating cash flow
$-8.89M
Free cash flow
$-8.92M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$7.38M
Diluted EPS
0.13
Operating cash flow
$-8.62M
Free cash flow
$-8.62M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$-14.07M
Diluted EPS
-0.39
Operating cash flow
$-5.81M
Free cash flow
$-5.82M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$-10.65M
Diluted EPS
-0.33
Operating cash flow
$-6.57M
Free cash flow
$-6.57M
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Sources
Is it cheap or expensive?
Fair value — vs current price $8.91
We couldn't calculate a fair value right now.
Is it drowning in debt?
Healthy
Net cash $152.0M - more cash than debt. Interest coverage -22.7x.
Net debt
$-152.05M
Interest coverage
-22.74x
Candel Therapeutics, Inc.'s profit covers its interest bill about 0.0 times over. which is weaker than most peers shown here and 3 peers sit below 1x, which is the danger zone where profit does not fully cover the interest bill.
Healthy
Worse cushion
Baseline
Better cushion
CADL
BASELINE
Candel Therapeutics, Inc.
Total debt $49.52M Interest coverage -22.74x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $238.00M Interest coverage -48.25x Neither company has much profit cushion over interest right now.
Total debt $254.58M Interest coverage -42.92x Neither company has much profit cushion over interest right now.
Total debt $233.35M Interest coverage -75.61x Neither company has much profit cushion over interest right now.
What you should know
The case for and against CADL
0 Rewards
1 Risk
Rewards
Risks
-
Return on equity was -81.8% last year — the company lost money on shareholders' equity.
The numbers
All the key metrics, grouped by purpose
Tap any ? icon to learn what it means.
Valuation
How expensive the stock looks
P/E (TTM)
—
Forward P/E
-14.26x
P/B
5.38x
P/S
—
EV/EBITDA
-7.43x
PEG ratio
—
Profitability
How much profit each dollar creates
Gross margin
0.0%
Operating margin
0.0%
Net margin
0.0%
ROE
-81.8%
ROA
-28.6%
Health
Liquidity and balance-sheet strength
Debt / equity
0.39x
Current ratio
16.09x
Quick ratio
15.89x
Total debt
$49.52M
Total cash
$201.56M
Growth
How the business has been compounding
Revenue TTM
$125.00K
Revenue 5Y CAGR
0.0%
EPS TTM
-1.46
EPS 5Y CAGR
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Cash flow
How much cash the business throws off
Operating CF TTM
$-56.02M
Free CF TTM
$-38.90M
FCF margin
-31,118.4%
Dividend
Shareholder payout
Yield
0.0%
Payout ratio
0.0%
Last ex-div date
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