Full-Time
Posted on 10/2/2025
Develops small-molecule therapies for muscle function
No salary listed
Wesenberg, Germany
In Person
Cytokinetics develops and commercializes small molecule drugs aimed at improving muscle function for cardiovascular and neuromuscular diseases. Its products are designed to either enhance or adjust muscle contraction, with a pipeline that includes compounds like omecamtiv mecarbil, reldesemtiv, CK-274, AMG 594, and CK-601, currently in various stages of clinical trials. The company advances therapies through partnerships, licensing, and potential sales of approved medicines, and relies on extensive clinical testing to demonstrate effectiveness and safety. What sets Cytokinetics apart is its focused approach on muscle function modulators (activators and inhibitors) for both heart and skeletal muscle diseases, targeting conditions such as heart failure, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, ALS, and SMA. Its goal is to bring medicines to patients to improve muscle performance and daily function, addressing unmet medical needs in these diseases.
Company Size
501-1,000
Company Stage
IPO
Headquarters
South San Francisco, California
Founded
1998
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Health Insurance
Paid Vacation
Professional Development Budget
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., May 06, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - Cytokinetics, Incorporated (Nasdaq: CYTK) today announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 9,859,155 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $71.00 per share, before underwriting discounts and commissions. The gross proceeds to Cytokinetics from the offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by Cytokinetics, are expected to be approximately $700 million. The offering is expected to close on May 8, 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Additionally, Cytokinetics has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,478,873 shares of its common stock at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. All of the shares of common stock in the offering will be sold by Cytokinetics. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Co. LLC, J.P. Morgan and Jefferies are acting as joint book-running
Cytokinetics has received FDA approval for MYQORZO, a cardiac drug and key product in its pipeline. The approval marks a significant milestone for the company, which previously focused primarily on research and development. Shortly after the approval, President and CEO Robert Blum sold a significant amount of company stock, drawing investor attention to insider activity. The stock currently trades at $66.73, approximately 28% below the consensus analyst target of $92.82. The company carries negative shareholders' equity and remains unprofitable, presenting risks alongside the recent insider selling. Investors are monitoring how MYQORZO uptake and future regulatory updates may affect the company's valuation and commercial trajectory in the cardiac treatment space.
Cytokinetics expects phase 3 ACACIA-HCM results in Q2 for non-obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which could expand MYQORZO's label beyond its current obstructive HCM indication. Non-obstructive HCM represents approximately 50% of the total HCM market opportunity. The company's MYQORZO launch is progressing, with approvals in the US, Europe and China. Cytokinetics has deployed around 125 US cardiovascular account specialists, with over 700 REMS-certified prescribers and more than 90% cardiology awareness. Phase 2 dosing data showed approximately 85% of patients reached the highest doses, with only two out of 40-plus patients requiring dose reductions and no treatment interruptions. The company began the year with $1.2 billion in cash to fund US launch activities and European expansion, including planned Germany entry in Q2.
Cytokinetics has launched MYQORZO (aficamten), a cardiac myosin inhibitor for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, in the US through a restricted FDA Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy programme. The company is implementing a support programme and specialty pharmacy network to manage structured access and patient monitoring. The launch transitions Cytokinetics from regulatory approval to commercial execution, though REMS restrictions and ongoing shareholder investigations maintain regulatory and governance risks. The company currently operates at a loss with negative equity. Investor valuations for Cytokinetics vary widely, ranging from $5.69 to $355.92 per share amongst Simply Wall St Community members. The investment case hinges on MYQORZO's ability to become the foundation of a broader cardiac franchise, with pricing, uptake and real-world safety data serving as key near-term catalysts.
Cytokinetics announces positive CHMP opinion for myqorzo(r)(aficamten) in the treatment of obstructive Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. Cytokinetics announces positive CHMP opinion for MYQORZO(R) in obstructive HCM. Cytokinetics, Incorporated (Nasdaq: CYTK) today announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has adopted a positive opinion recommending marketing authorization in the European Union (EU) for MYQORZO(R)(aficamten), a cardiac myosin inhibitor, for the treatment of symptomatic (New York Heart Association, NYHA, class II-III) obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (oHCM) in adult patients. A final decision is anticipated from the European Commission in the first quarter of 2026. "We are pleased with CHMP's positive recommendation based on the robust clinical evidence from SEQUOIA-HCM that demonstrated the safety and efficacy of MYQORZO in patients with oHCM, and we are accelerating commercial readiness activities accordingly," said Robert I. Blum, Cytokinetics' President and Chief Executive Officer. "Given the urgency to bring new treatment options to the European oHCM patient community, pending the final European Commission decision, we look forward to making MYQORZO available to patients in Europe." "This positive opinion from the CHMP is an important milestone toward bringing a new treatment option with distinct attributes to patients with oHCM," said Iacopo Olivotto, M.D., Head of the Cardiomyopathy Center and Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Florence, Italy. Aficamten is currently under regulatory review in the U.S., where the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is reviewing a New Drug Application (NDA) with a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of December 26, 2025. Additionally, the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) of the China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) is reviewing an NDA for aficamten with Priority Review. The CHMP recommendation for MYQORZO is based on the positive results from the pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial, SEQUOIA-HCM, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which demonstrated robust efficacy, safety, and clinically meaningful benefits across symptoms, exercise capacity, hemodynamics, and biomarker endpoints.[1] The results from SEQUOIA-HCM showed that treatment with MYQORZO for 24 weeks significantly improved exercise capacity compared to placebo, increasing peak oxygen uptake (pVO[2]) measured by cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) by 1.8 ml/kg/min compared to baseline in patients treated with MYQORZO versus 0.0 ml/kg/min in patients treated with placebo (least square mean (LSM) difference [95% CI] of 1.74 mL/kg/min [1.04 - 2.44]; p=0.000002). The treatment effect of MYQORZO was consistent across all prespecified subgroups, including age, sex, patient baseline characteristics, and in patients receiving or not receiving background beta-blocker therapy. MYQORZO was well-tolerated, with no instances of worsening heart failure or treatment interruptions due to low left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Treatment emergent serious adverse events occurred in 5.6% and 9.3% of patients on MYQORZO and placebo, respectively. Core lab echocardiographic LVEF was observed to be <50% in 5 patients (3.5%) on MYQORZO compared to 1 patient (0.7%) on placebo. MYQORZO(R)(aficamten) is an investigational selective, small molecule cardiac myosin inhibitor discovered following an extensive chemical optimization program that was conducted with careful attention to therapeutic index and pharmacokinetic properties.[2] MYQORZO was designed to reduce the number of active actin-myosin cross bridges during each cardiac cycle and consequently suppress the myocardial hypercontractility that is associated with HCM. In preclinical models, MYQORZO reduced myocardial contractility by binding directly to cardiac myosin at a distinct and selective allosteric binding site, thereby preventing myosin from entering a force producing state. The development program for MYQORZO assessed its potential as a treatment that improves exercise capacity and relieves symptoms in patients with obstructive HCM. MYQORZO was evaluated in SEQUOIA-HCM, a positive pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial in patients with symptomatic obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). MYQORZO received Breakthrough Therapy Designation for the treatment of symptomatic HCM from the FDA and for the treatment of symptomatic obstructive HCM from the NMPA in China. Aficamten is also currently being evaluated in ACACIA-HCM, a Phase 3 clinical trial of aficamten in patients with non-obstructive HCM; CEDAR-HCM, a clinical trial of aficamten in a pediatric population with oHCM; and FOREST-HCM, an open-label extension clinical study of aficamten in patients with HCM. Aficamten was also the subject of MAPLE-HCM, a Phase 3 randomized, double-blind, active-comparator clinical trial in patients with oHCM. About Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy HCM is the most common monogenic inherited cardiovascular disorder, affecting approximately 1 out of 500 Europeans, according to the European Society of Cardiology guidelines.[3] Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a disease in which the heart muscle (myocardium) becomes abnormally thick (hypertrophied). The thickening of cardiac muscle leads to the inside of the left ventricle becoming smaller and stiffer, and thus the ventricle becomes less able to relax and fill with blood. This ultimately limits the heart's pumping function, resulting in reduced exercise capacity and symptoms including chest pain, dizziness, shortness of breath, or fainting during physical activity. Two-thirds of patients with HCM have obstructive HCM (oHCM), where the thickening of the cardiac muscle leads to left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) obstruction, while one-third have non-obstructive HCM (nHCM), where blood flow isn't impacted, but the heart muscle is still thickened. People with HCM are at high risk of also developing cardiovascular complications including atrial fibrillation, stroke and mitral valve disease.[4] People with HCM are at risk for potentially fatal ventricular arrhythmias and it is one of the leading causes of sudden cardiac death in younger people or athletes.[5] A subset of patients with HCM are at high risk of progressive disease leading to dilated cardiomyopathy and heart failure necessitating cardiac transplantation. About Cytokinetics Cytokinetics is a specialty cardiovascular biopharmaceutical company, building on its over 25 years of pioneering scientific innovations in muscle biology, and advancing a pipeline of potential new medicines for patients suffering from diseases of cardiac muscle dysfunction. Cytokinetics is readying for potential regulatory approvals and commercialization of aficamten, a cardiac myosin inhibitor, following positive results from SEQUOIA-HCM, the pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial in patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Aficamten is also being evaluated in additional clinical trials enrolling patients with obstructive and non-obstructive HCM. In addition, Cytokinetics is developing omecamtiv mecarbil, a cardiac myosin activator, in patients with heart failure with severely reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), ulacamten, a cardiac myosin inhibitor with a mechanism of action distinct from aficamten, for the potential treatment of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and CK-089, a fast skeletal muscle troponin activator with potential therapeutic application to a specific type of muscular dystrophy and other conditions of impaired skeletal muscle function. Source Link: https://ir.cytokinetics.com/