Why Wall Street still sees upside in biotech Relmada after 800% growth in 2025

In 2025, shares of biotech Relmada Therapeutics surged more than 800%. The company executed a strategic pivot after its lead experimental therapy – a program developed for more than 15 years – failed in clinical trials in December 2024. The setback triggered a sharp selloff in the stock and raised questions about the company’s ability to continue operations. So why does Wall Street now see as much as 140% upside?

Relmada Therapeutics was founded in 2004, merged with another drug developer, Medeor, in 2013, and went public a year later. The company initially focused on treatments for chronic pain and depression. Its primary drug candidate was d-Methadone, also known as REL-1017. Relmada acquired the license for the compound for $180,000 from Charles Inturrisi, PhD, and Medeor cofounder Paolo Manfredi, and advanced it as a therapy for patients with depression who do not respond to conventional antidepressants.

In 2021, Relmada reported that REL-1017 was safe, effective, and nonaddictive in phase II clinical trials. Subsequent studies, however, showed that the therapy was not significantly more effective than placebo. On October 13, 2022, the day that data was released, Relmada shares fell about 80%.

The setback did not halt development. The company spent the following year analyzing results and adjusting its research strategy. Relmada expected 2024 to mark a turning point, but in December the Independent Data Monitoring Committee deemed the REL-1017 dataset futile and the therapy ineffective. The stock fell more than 77% to $0.63 per share.

Days later, the small-cap drugmaker said it would discontinue work on the depression program and continue development of another therapy targeting metabolic diseases, including obesity, which at the time was in phase I clinical testing.

Relmada also began exploring strategic alternatives – including a potential sale, merger, acquisition, and other transactions – while warning investors that there were no assurances the process would lead to a deal.

In early 2025, Relmada announced two transactions. The company acquired sepranolone from Swedish biotech Asarina Pharma – a phase II therapy being developed for Prader-Willi syndrome, a genetic disorder associated with developmental delay and obesity. Shortly thereafter, Relmada announced a licensing agreement with Israel’s Trigone Pharma for NDV-01, a therapy for bladder cancer.

Results followed quickly. In August, Relmada reported strong phase II data for NDV-01 in a form of bladder cancer. The data exceeded expectations and supported plans to initiate a phase III study in the first half of 2026, Freedom Broker notes. At the same time, the company said it would continue development of sepranolone, with further clinical trials planned for 2026.

The dual-focus strategy – oncology therapies and CNS treatments – helped draw investor attention to the company’s diversified pipeline, Freedom analysts said. By September, Relmada had regained compliance with Nasdaq’s $1 minimum bid price requirement and avoided delisting.

These developments signaled the market’s return to confidence in the company’s drug potential after previous setbacks, Freedom wrote.

Relmada shares delivered a return of about 829% in 2025. The stock now carries three Wall Street analyst ratings – all “buy” – versus none three months earlier, according to MarketWatch data. The average target price stands at $9.67 per share, implying about 140% upside versus current levels.

Jefferies initiated coverage of Relmada in December with a “buy” rating and a $9 per share target price. The investment bank said the company underwent a transformation in 2025, shifting from a failed program toward a portfolio centered on oncology and neurological drug development.

Jefferies, in a report seen by Oninvest, outlined three potential scenarios for the stock. In its base case, the target price of $9 per share assumes the expected clinical-trial outcomes for both lead programs. In its optimistic scenario, the target price rises to $12 per share as the data exceeds expectations and regulators grant accelerated-development designations. In its pessimistic scenario, the target price falls to $2 per share, reflecting the risk of unsuccessful clinical results.