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Charles Zhu

Managing Director and Senior Research Analyst at LifeSci Capital, LLC

Charles Zhu, Ph.D. is a Managing Director and Senior Research Analyst at LifeSci Capital, LLC, specializing in biotechnology and with deep expertise in the oncology sector. He covers a targeted universe of life sciences companies such as Molecular Partners, providing high-impact investment recommendations and delivering equity research informed by management consulting experience in drug pricing and market access. Zhu’s analyst track record includes coverage of 21 stocks, backed by a documented 29.47% success rate on platforms like TipRanks and a reputation for actionable, sector-focused research. He joined LifeSci Capital in June 2024 after previous roles at firms such as Guggenheim Partners, and holds recognized research credentials in the field.

Charles Zhu's questions to Mersana Therapeutics (MRSN) leadership

Charles Zhu's questions to Mersana Therapeutics (MRSN) leadership • Q2 2025

Question

Charles Zhu from LifeSci Capital, LLC asked if the TPS 70% cutoff for B7-H4 high expression is now settled and how the company will evaluate the clinical profile trade-off between the two dosing regimens (Dose A vs. Dose B) given the new mitigation strategies.

Answer

President and CEO Dr. Martin Huber responded that the upcoming expansion data will be used to finalize the B7-H4 cut point, though he anticipates the 'high' population will remain around 40-50% of patients. He explained that the key hypothesis is that Dose B, without treatment interruptions, will yield better efficacy. The upcoming data will be critical to determine if the efficacy gain justifies the higher dose; otherwise, Dose A would be the go-forward option.

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Charles Zhu's questions to Zymeworks (ZYME) leadership

Charles Zhu's questions to Zymeworks (ZYME) leadership • Q2 2025

Question

Charles Zhu from LifeSci Capital asked about the clinical development strategy for Zymeworks' pipeline, questioning the competitive bar for ZW191 against other ADCs and the plan for evaluating ZW251 in liver cancer patients with more severe hepatic impairment.

Answer

CEO Kenneth Galbraith positioned ZW191 as a differentiated asset with a novel mechanism and tolerability profile, similar to zanidatumab's development path. Chief Scientific Officer Paul Moore added that ZW251's high preclinical tolerability provides flexibility to systematically study it in HCC and potentially expand into more challenging patient populations later.

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Charles Zhu's questions to Kura Oncology (KURA) leadership

Charles Zhu's questions to Kura Oncology (KURA) leadership • Q4 2024

Question

Charles Zhu of LifeSci Capital asked what data Kura needs to deliver for its farnesyl transferase inhibitor, KO-2806, in the second half of 2025 to build conviction among investors, particularly in competitive areas like RCC and RAS-driven tumors.

Answer

CEO Troy Wilson stated that the key goals are to first demonstrate acceptable safety and tolerability in combination with other targeted agents, a common failure point for combos. Second, they aim to show unexpected clinical activity, such as restoring responses in patients who have failed standard therapies, which would be a strong signal of the drug's potential.

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Charles Zhu's questions to Xencor (XNCR) leadership

Charles Zhu's questions to Xencor (XNCR) leadership • Q3 2023

Question

Asked about vudalimab's differentiation in NSCLC, expectations for upcoming prostate cancer data, and enrollment progress for the XmAb564 study.

Answer

The company explained vudalimab is designed for better tolerability and that comparisons are difficult but they believe it's competitive. For the prostate data, they aim to report on more patients to assess its position against a high competitive bar. For XmAb564, the timeline is driven by safety observation periods, not enrollment speed.

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Charles Zhu's questions to IDEAYA Biosciences (IDYA) leadership

Charles Zhu's questions to IDEAYA Biosciences (IDYA) leadership • Q1 2022

Question

Charles Zhu asked about the significance of absolute tumor SDMA levels post-treatment, not just percent reduction, the impact of pre-treatment H-scores, and the meaning of cytoplasmic versus nuclear SDMA knockdown.

Answer

Michael White, Chief Scientific Officer, explained that preclinically, greater suppression of absolute SDMA values correlates with better efficacy, irrespective of the starting H-score. Matt Maurer, Head of Clinical Oncology, noted that observing cytoplasmic SDMA reduction is a positive sign of the drug reaching its target, but further conclusions on its specific meaning are premature.

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