OIS Index Lags Again in August

The OIS Index of ophthalmic stocks declined 0.4% in August, underperforming its benchmark indices for the second straight month. The NASDAQ Biotechnology Index posted a small gain (+0.9%), while medical device stocks (+3.7%) and the broader US market (+7.1%) continued their strong upward trends.

OIS Index performance in August was negatively impacted by a non-ophthalmic pipeline setback for Unity Biotechnology (–66.7%), which announced that a Phase II study in osteoarthritis failed to meet its primary endpoint. As a result, the company will narrow its near-term focus on ophthalmic and neurologic disease programs.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (+19.1%) had the largest positive impact on OIS Index performance during the month. The largest percentage gainers, but with smaller impact on index performance due to lower weighting within the index, were KalVista Pharmaceuticals (+33.3%) and Harrow Health (+25.7%).