Five Prime rockets on immuno-oncology deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb

Shares of Five Prime Therapeutics (Nasdaq: FPRX) leapt 15% to $21.48 in early trading, after the company said it has signed a collaboration deal with US pharma major Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) worth up to $350 million.

The accord is for the discovery, development and commercialization of immuno-oncology therapies directed toward targets identified in two undisclosed immune checkpoint pathways using Five Prime’s proprietary target discovery platform.

Under the terms of the agreement, B-MS will obtain exclusive, worldwide rights to develop and commercialize products directed toward certain protein targets identified by Five Prime prior to and during the collaboration. The drug major will make an upfront payment of $20 million to Five Prime and provide up to $9.5 million in research funding over the course of the research term.