Contineum Therapeutics' JNJ-5120 Depression Drug Candidate Misses Primary Endpoint

Contineum Therapeutics' shares declined after hours following the announcement that its depression drug candidate, JNJ-5120, failed to hit its primary efficacy endpoint in a mid-stage trial.

The MOONLIGHT-1 study evaluated JNJ-5120 as a monotherapy for adults with major depressive disorder and involved 107 patients. The results showed no statistically significant improvement on the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale compared to those receiving a placebo, missing its primary endpoint.

This is the second Phase 2 disappointment for JNJ-5120 in less than a year, following a November 2025 readout that also missed its primary and secondary goals. The company had licensed the candidate to Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) in 2023 for up to $1 billion in milestone payments.

Despite the clinical setback, Contineum's shares fell only about 3.5% in after-hours trading, and J&J shares traded flat. Analysts at William Blair removed JNJ-5120 from their financial model following the miss, citing its high-risk nature due to placebo-controlled studies in MDD.