Psychedelics stocks rise as Compass’ psilocybin drug heads to FDA

Jacob Bell

Wed, February 18, 2026 at 6:25 PM GMT+9 3 min read

In this article:

DFTX

+1.78%

COMP

+2.43%

GHRS

+0.56%

CMPS

+13.16%

_This story was originally published on BioPharma Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily BioPharma Dive newsletter. _

In the business of biotechnology, a rising tide can lift all boats. Psychedelics developers appeared to experience this Tuesday, following positive updates from the field’s most advanced drug program.

The stock prices of at least four companies were up by mid-single digits to low-double digits at certain points throughout the day. GH Research and Helus Pharma, two small biotechs respectively based in Ireland and Canada, saw the biggest gains of nearly 12%. Shares of AtaiBeckley and Definium Therapeutics, which rebranded from MindMed last month, increased between 5% and 8% at their peak.

The changes happened shortly after Compass Pathways, a leading developer in the space, reported positive findings from two late-stage studies of its synthetic version of psilocybin — the mind-altering compound found in certain mushroom species. Initial data from the first of those trials, which pitted one dose of the compound against a placebo in treatment-resistant depression, came last summer. Compass unveiled more results Tuesday, including that a second dose of its therapy, codenamed COMP360, helped a significant portion of one subset of patients go into remission.

Providing a first look at that second, twice-as-large trial, Compass said its therapy was once again well-tolerated and effective. The experiment assessed two doses COMP360 against a far smaller dose that acted as a control group. Six weeks into the trial’s treatment period, patients on the highest dose scored an average 3.8 points lower than those in the control group, on a 60-point scale where bigger scores signal more severe depression symptoms.

Encouraged by this body of evidence, Compass said it plans to soon meet with the Food and Drug Administration to discuss submitting COMP360 for review, with an approval application slated for sometime between October and December. Shares of the company subsequently spiked more than 50%.

Stock changes of psychedelics developers on Tuesday, Feb. 17.

SOURCE: Yahoo Finance data

Compass’ “favorable” depression data should have a positive impact on the psychedelic field broadly, according to Jefferies analyst Andrew Tsai.

In a note to clients, Tsai wrote that the updates affirm the ability of psychedelics to “safely produce rapid/durable efficacy” in central nervous system disorders that are both tough to treat and have $1 billion-plus commercial opportunities. They also showcase that promising Phase 2 data — like Compass generated back in 2022 — can lead to solid outcomes in late-stage testing.

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“Ultimately, we think multiple psychedelics can share the market,” Tsai wrote.

GH has been developing an inhaled inhaled version a molecular cousin to psilocybin, mebufotenin, and last year announced trial results indicating the therapy was fast and effective against treatment-resistant depression. Atai, too, has a mebufotenin-based compound being evaluated in this setting. It comes as a nasal spray.

Helus, formerly known as Cybin, has been trying to craft new molecules that act on the same brain receptors as psilocybin and “DMT,” to treat conditions like major depressive disorder or generalized anxiety disorder. Also on Monday, the journal Nature Medicine published data from a mid-stage study of one of the company’s experimental drugs.

Definium has a synthetic derivative of LSD that’s progressed to Phase 3 studies for those same two indications Helus is targeting.

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Compass, with Phase 3 hits, ready to take psilocybin to the FDA

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