Why Is Contineum Therapeutics Stock Down Today?

Contineum Therapeutics stock is down after hours because the Phase 2 MOONLIGHT-1 trial of JNJ-5120, also called PIPE-307, the depression drug Contineum licensed to Johnson & Johnson, did not meet its primary efficacy endpoint. The results crossed MoveSurge's tape at 16:05:00 ET, after the stock closed at $14.82, at the end of the regular session; in after-hours trading it was at $14.14 one minute later, 4.588% below the close, and $14.00 ten minutes later, 5.533% below it (measured).

What the MOONLIGHT-1 trial tested

MOONLIGHT-1 was a randomized, double-blind, multicenter, placebo-controlled proof-of-concept study of JNJ-5120 given alone to adults with major depressive disorder. Johnson & Johnson finished enrolling its 107 participants in June 2026. The primary endpoint was the change from baseline in the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total score at day 5, compared with placebo, and the drug did not meet it. Contineum said JNJ-5120 was well tolerated with no new safety signals. Johnson & Johnson is still reviewing the data, including prespecified exploratory endpoints, before deciding what to do next with the drug.

JNJ-5120 is a small molecule that blocks the muscarinic M1 receptor, a receptor for the signaling chemical acetylcholine.

The second Phase 2 miss for the same molecule

Contineum ran VISTA itself under rights it kept for multiple sclerosis; Johnson & Johnson ran MOONLIGHT-1.

What Contineum still stands to earn from PIPE-307

On April 17, 2023, Contineum, then called Pipeline Therapeutics, gave Janssen, a Johnson & Johnson company, a worldwide exclusive license to research, develop and sell PIPE-307 in all indications, while keeping the right to run a Phase 2 trial in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. Contineum received $50 million upfront and up to $25 million in equity investment from Johnson & Johnson's venture arm. It is eligible for about $1 billion in clinical, regulatory and commercial milestone payments plus tiered double-digit royalties, which rise if Contineum exercises its co-development option. Its financial interest in PIPE-307 runs through those payments.

Cash and the program Contineum owns outright

Contineum had $236.6 million in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at June 30, 2026, which it said funds planned operations through mid-2029. Its wholly owned lead program is PIPE-791, an LPA1 receptor antagonist in PROPEL-IPF, a 26-week, placebo-controlled Phase 2 trial in about 324 patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis running at more than 55 sites in eight countries. PIPE-791 is also in development for chronic pain.

Contineum went public on April 5, 2024, selling 6,875,000 shares at $16.00 for $110.0 million. The $14.00 after-hours price ten minutes after the MOONLIGHT-1 news was 12.50% below that IPO price.

How the stock traded after hours, measured minute by minute

The release came five minutes after the 16:00 ET close, when few shares trade. Trades in the first ten minutes reached as low as $13.17 at 16:08 ET, 11.13% below the $14.82 close, on 10,379 shares in all:

The regular session is the other half of the day: the stock closed at $14.82, at the end of the regular session, before the trial result was public.