AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVEO) Continues To Reward Our readers: What's Next?

We've had a number of big winners from our Biotech Catalyst series over the last couple of months and AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVEO) is one of them. The company, which we first highlighted as being one to watch back on June 8 as part of this piece, has grown considerably subsequent to our initial coverage and – as the weeks have gone by – continues to do so.When we first highlighted it, AVEO was trading for $0.76 a share. By the end of June, the company had run up to $2.22 a piece. In response to the run, we published this piece outlining what we expect going forward. Specifically, we noted that we might see a near-term correction as the shorter-term operators pull profits off the table but, longer-term, the run that we had just seen would likely prove the start of a longer-term trend reversal and that – as a result – any correction could be a nice opportunity to pick up shares ahead of further upside reevaluation.Turns out we were on the money again.Subsequent to its appreciation, AVEO dipped to around $2.12 a share before reversing and running to last Friday's close at $2.79. All told, that's a 267% run for readers that picked up a position on the back of our initial coverage.So, the time has come again to ask the question – what's next?The answer, we remain bullish on this one throughout the remainder of this year and into at least early 2018.Specifically, we are looking at a US catalyst as fundamental to AVEO's further appreciation and – ahead of this catalyst – speculative loading boosting the company's market capitalization in anticipation of it hitting press as positive.For those that missed our previous coverage, this one is rooted in a drug called tivozanib, which the company is trying to get approved as a treatment for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC), which is a form of kidney cancer. A large number of patients in this indication are either unresponsive to the current standard of care treatments or have drawn some degree of benefit but are no longer responding to the SOC and AVEO is trying to bring tivozanib to market in both the US and Europe as an extra option for these patients. The initial run came on the back of a European panel meeting that recommended the drug for approval in Europe (similar to an FDA committee meeting in the US).This sets up a 2017 catalyst (not the primary, but one well worth watching nonetheless) of a final European Medicines Agency (EMA) decision, set to hit press at some point during late September (based on a 67-day schedule from the panel recommendation).The one we are really looking for, however, is the outcome of a phase 3 study set up to investigate the asset in the above-described target indication. The trial is comparing tivozanib with sorafenib, an already approved Bayer AG (ADR) (OTCMKTS:BAYRY) asset in the RCC space, and topline data from this study is set to read out during the first quarter of 2018.If the numbers hit press as positive (i.e. if the trial shows that the drug can be at least as effective as the already approved sorafenib) then it will almost certainly underpin a strong registration application in the US and – in turn – set the company up for a positive PDUFA at some point during mid to late year.Nothing is guaranteed, of course, and therein lies the risk of an exposure at this stage.For the more conservative traders out there, there is the potential to mitigate some of this risk by waiting for the European approval outcome ahead of picking up exposure and using this outcome to inform an altered risk-benefit profile later on this year.Bottom line: this one has been a big winner for our readers so far and we expect this to continue going forward.Check out our previous coverage of AVEO here!We will be updating our subscribers as soon as we know more. For the latest updates on AVEO, sign up below!Image courtesy of KV Santosh via FlickrDisclosure: We have no position in AVEO and have not been compensated for this article.