Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated's CORT only marketed drug, Korlym, has been approved for the once-daily oral treatment of hyperglycemia — secondary to hypercortisolism — in adult patients with endogenous Cushing’s syndrome who are suffering from type II diabetes or glucose intolerance, and who have already failed surgery or are unsuitable for the same.

The company’s top line solely comprises of Korlym sales, which witnessed a year-over-year increase during the first quarter of 2022.

Shares of Corcept have rallied 28.5% so far this year against the industry’s decline of 21.5%.

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Corcept’s lead pipeline candidate, relacorilant, is being evaluated in phase III of the GRACE study to treat Cushing’s syndrome. Enrollment is currently underway in said study. A new drug application for relacorilant is expected to be submitted in the second half of 2023.

Relacorilant is also being investigated in phase III of the GRADIENT study in patients whose Cushing’s syndrome is caused by adrenal adenoma.

Last month, Corcept initiated the pivotal phase III ROSELLA study evaluating relacorilant in combination with nab-paclitaxel for the treatment of patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.

A phase Ib study is evaluating relacorilant in combination with Merck’s MRK PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor, Keytruda (pembrolizumab), for treating patients suffering from adrenal cancer with cortisol excess.

Merck’s biggest revenue generator, Keytruda, is approved for treating several types of cancer indications. MRK continues to study Keytruda for addressing more cancer indications.

Corcept’s other pipeline candidates, exicorilant and miricorilant, are also progressing well.

The company is conducting a dose-finding study on exicorilant or relacorilant in combination with Pfizer’s Xtandi (enzalutamide) for treating patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

Corcept is evaluating miricorilant in the phase II GRATITUDE study for treating the reversal of antipsychotic-induced weight gain (“AIWG”). The candidate is also being investigated in the phase II GRATITUDE 2 study to reverse the long-standing AIWG. Data from both studies are expected in the fourth quarter 2022.

Successful development and potential approval of all these candidates will lend a big boost to Corcept and is likely to lower its dependence on Korlym.

Korlym has been performing well since its launch and has seen a strong uptake. However, the company remains heavily dependent on Korlym for growth. Moreover, its pipeline is still some years away from commercialization. Hence, a decline in Korlym sales will significantly hurt the company’s prospects.

Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated Price and Consensus

Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated price-consensus-chart | Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated Quote

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Corcept currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks in the same sector are Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. SPPI and Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc. VRCA, both carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Spectrum Pharmaceuticals’ loss per share has narrowed 16.1% for 2022 and 36.3% for 2023 in the past 60 days.

Earnings of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals have surpassed estimates in two of the trailing four quarters and missed the same on the other two occasions. SPPI delivered an earnings surprise of 5.72%, on average.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals’ loss per share estimates narrowed 44.4% for 2022 and 21.7% for 2023 in the past 60 days.

Earnings of Verrica Pharmaceuticals have surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters. VRCA delivered an earnings surprise of 28.45%, on average.

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