Nuvation Bio Chief Scientist Sells 100,000 Shares Under Trading Plan — Here's What to Know About the Stock

Gary Hattersley, chief scientific officer at Nuvation Bio (NYSE:NUVB), exercised and immediately sold 100,000 shares of Class A common stock in an open-market derivative transaction on October 27, according to an SEC Form 4 filing.

Transaction Summary

Transaction value is based on the SEC Form 4 weighted average purchase price ($5.02).

Key Questions

What was the structure and context of this transaction?
This transaction involved the exercise of 100,000 stock options, immediately followed by the sale of the resulting shares in the open market.

How does this trade compare to the insider's historical activity?
This is Hattersley's only recorded open-market sale of Nuvation Bio stock within the available filing history; all prior transactions were administrative in nature and did not involve market sales.

What is the impact on the insider’s ownership and option position?
Following the sale on October 27, direct ownership of Class A Common Stock dropped to zero; however, Hattersley still owns 298,935 stock options.

How does the sale price relate to recent share performance?
The shares were sold at a weighted average price of approximately $5.02 per share.

Company Overview

Company Snapshot

Nuvation Bio Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in the development of novel oncology therapeutics. The company leverages a robust pipeline of targeted small molecule inhibitors and conjugate platforms to address high unmet needs in cancer treatment. It focuses on oncology therapeutic candidates for breast and ovarian cancer.

Foolish Take

Hattersley's transaction was executed under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan dating back to last year. The sale followed the exercise of options priced at $1.74 per share and represented Hattersley’s first open-market sale of Nuvation Bio stock on record. After the trade, he reported no direct ownership of Class A common shares but retained 298,935 stock options.

For long-term investors, insider sales like this—especially pre-planned under a 10b5-1 plan—often reflect personal financial planning rather than a change in outlook. Hattersley, who joined Nuvation in 2019 after a 15-year career at Radius Health, oversees the company’s oncology drug development pipeline, which is key given that Nuvation’s focus remains on small-molecule therapies for difficult-to-treat cancers, including its lead CDK2/4/6 inhibitor now progressing through early-stage clinical trials. With Nuvation’s progress in oncology R&D and its strong leadership bench, the company remains one to watch as it advances multiple cancer candidates through clinical development. After all, the stock is up a staggering 136% over the past year but remains about 65% below 2021 highs.

Glossary

Insider: A company executive, director, or major shareholder with access to non-public company information.
Open-market derivative transaction: A trade involving securities or options executed on a public exchange, not through private agreement.
Stock option exercise: The act of purchasing shares at a preset price through an employee stock option plan.
Form 4: A required SEC filing disclosing insider trades in a company’s securities.
Weighted average purchase price: The average price paid per share, weighted by the number of shares bought at each price.
Disposition: The act of selling or otherwise transferring ownership of an asset or security.
Direct ownership: Shares held and controlled directly by an individual, not through trusts or indirect means.
Clinical-stage: Refers to a company whose drug candidates are being tested in human clinical trials but are not yet approved.
TTM: The 12-month period ending with the most recent quarterly report.
CDK2/4/6 inhibitor: A drug that blocks specific enzymes (CDK2, CDK4, CDK6) involved in cancer cell growth.
BET inhibitor: A compound that blocks BET proteins, which regulate genes involved in cancer progression.
Wee1 kinase inhibitor: A drug that targets the Wee1 kinase enzyme, disrupting cancer cell division.

Jonathan Ponciano has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.