The Immutep Ltd (ASX: IMM) share price has gyrated in recent months, having slumped from a 52-week high of 71 cents back in November to close Friday's session at 37 cents.
Investors pushed the stock to 52-week lows by April this year, when it then found buyers at the 30.5 cents mark, and it has been on an upward ascent since.
As seen below, the Immutep share price has gained around 7% in the past month, despite the period of volatility leading up to this point.
What tailwinds are there for the Immutep share price in June?
The Immutep share price came out of May in a healthy position, having strengthened throughout the month. Investors pushed the stock around 24% higher in May following two updates regarding the company's lead drug candidate, efti.
Study readouts are key in the growth narrative of biotech stocks like Immutep. For the company, news around its etfi compound has been paramount for its share price appreciation.
Most recently, Immutep advised of another phase 2 trial update regarding the use of etfi as a combination therapy with the drug Keytruda (pembrolizumab).
The trial, called TACTI-002, "met its primary objective for 1st line non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients in a PD-L1 all-comer Phase II clinical trial conducted in collaboration with MSD", the company said.
[The] "combination of efti plus pembrolizumab shows favourable anti-tumour activity…[dosages] were safe and well tolerated, with a safety profile that is consistent with that observed in previously reported studies," it added.
Speaking on the results, Immutep CEO Marc Voigt said:
We are delighted that patient outcomes are improved with the combination of efti plus pembrolizumab across different patient groups. The data is encouraging for patients, as there is an unmet medical need particularly for those with NSCLC with no or low PD-L1 expression.
Immutep was also on the radar of Pengana High Conviction portfolio manager James McDonald when he spoke to The Motley Fool's Tony Yoo last month.
McDonald said there was "very substantial upside" to be had in the Immutep share price should the company be able to successfully tap into its US$50 billion addressable market.
In the last 12 months, the Immutep share price has tumbled by more than 43% and is also down around 24% this year to date.
