Company Description
Sage Therapeutics, Inc. (former Nasdaq: SAGE) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on brain health. According to its public disclosures, Sage is committed to developing and delivering medicines for debilitating brain health conditions so that, in the company’s words, "every person can thrive." The company states that it has developed the only two FDA-approved treatments indicated for postpartum depression and is advancing a pipeline targeting unmet needs in brain health.
Sage Therapeutics was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It has operated in the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical space, with an emphasis on neuroscience and central nervous system (CNS) disorders. The company’s work is described as addressing unmet needs in brain health through the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines.
Focus on postpartum depression and brain health
In multiple recent news releases, Sage highlights its focus on postpartum depression (PPD). The company reports that it developed ZURZUVAE (zuranolone), which it describes as the first-and-only oral treatment indicated for adults with postpartum depression and, in some communications, as a once-daily 14-day oral treatment for adults with PPD. Sage emphasizes its goal of establishing ZURZUVAE as a standard treatment option for women with PPD and notes commercialization efforts, including collaboration with Biogen and joint sales force and marketing activities.
Sage also notes that it developed two FDA-approved treatments indicated for postpartum depression, and that thousands of women with PPD have received treatment with ZURZUVAE based on prescription shipment data disclosed in its financial updates. The company’s statements describe high levels of payer coverage for ZURZUVAE and significant use by obstetrician-gynecologists (OBGYNs) as prescribers.
Pipeline and research areas
Beyond its marketed treatments, Sage describes a pipeline focused on brain health and neurodevelopmental disorders. The company reports work on SAGE-319, which it characterizes as an extrasynaptic-preferring GABAA receptor positive allosteric modulator (PAM) designed to have novel pharmacology and a differentiated clinical profile from other GABAA receptor PAMs in its portfolio. SAGE-319 is being investigated as a potential treatment for behavioral symptoms associated with certain neurodevelopmental disorders, with a Phase 1 multiple ascending dose study in progress.
Sage also reports targeted work within its NMDA receptor negative allosteric modulator (NAM) platform, including preclinical programs SAGE-817 and SAGE-039, which it is exploring as potential treatments for neurodevelopmental disorders. In addition, the company is evaluating potential indications for SAGE-324, including seizures in developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs), and has indicated that it would provide updates on next steps for this program based on its internal review.
Collaboration and commercialization model
According to Sage’s financial disclosures, revenue has included collaboration revenue from ZURZUVAE, which the company explains represents 50% of the net revenue recorded when Biogen ships ZURZUVAE to distributors in the United States. Sage describes a collaboration and license agreement with Biogen under which certain research and development and selling, general and administrative costs are shared or reimbursed between the parties. The company also refers to other collaboration revenue and to reimbursement arrangements that affect its reported research and development and commercialization expenses.
Sage’s public statements describe a commercialization investment plan for ZURZUVAE that includes joint sales force expansions, digital marketing campaigns, and disease state awareness efforts intended to support screening and diagnosis of postpartum depression. The company has reported trends such as the proportion of prescriptions written by OBGYNs, repeat prescribing behavior among targeted healthcare professionals, and payer coverage metrics, as part of its description of the commercial trajectory of ZURZUVAE.
Corporate developments, acquisition and delisting
Sage Therapeutics was previously listed on The Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol SAGE. On June 13, 2025, Sage entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger with Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Saphire, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Supernus, as described in the company’s Form 8-K filings. Pursuant to this agreement, a tender offer was commenced to acquire all outstanding shares of Sage common stock for cash plus a contingent value right tied to specified commercial milestones.
According to the Form 8-K filed on July 31, 2025, the tender offer expired on July 30, 2025, and the conditions to closing were satisfied. Supernus, through its subsidiary, accepted for payment the shares validly tendered, and subsequently completed a merger in which Saphire, Inc. merged with and into Sage Therapeutics, Inc., with Sage continuing as the surviving corporation. As a result of this merger, Sage became a wholly owned subsidiary of Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and a change in control of the company occurred.
Following completion of the transaction, Sage notified Nasdaq of the consummation of the merger and requested that Nasdaq suspend trading and file a Form 25 to remove Sage’s common stock from listing on The Nasdaq Global Market and to deregister the shares under Section 12(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The Form 25 filed on July 31, 2025, identifies Sage Therapeutics, Inc. as the issuer and the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC as the exchange, and covers the removal from listing and registration of Sage’s common stock.
Subsequently, on August 11, 2025, Sage filed a Form 15 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, certifying the termination of registration of its common stock under Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act and the suspension of its duty to file periodic reports under Sections 13 and 15(d). The Form 15 notes that there was one holder of record at the time of filing. These steps mean that Sage’s common stock is no longer listed on Nasdaq and that the company has suspended its Exchange Act reporting obligations, consistent with its status as a wholly owned subsidiary of Supernus.
Historical context and legacy
Historically, Sage Therapeutics described itself as a neuroscience-focused company developing medicines to treat life-threatening and rare CNS disorders. Earlier descriptions referenced a chemistry platform generating compounds targeting GABAA and NMDA receptors and a portfolio of potential seizure medicines. Over time, the company’s public communications have emphasized its mission in brain health, its development of FDA-approved treatments for postpartum depression, and a pipeline directed at neuropsychiatry and neurodevelopmental disorders.
Today, Sage’s ticker symbol SAGE represents a former Nasdaq-listed biopharmaceutical issuer that has been acquired and is no longer independently traded. Investors and researchers looking at the SAGE symbol are generally reviewing the historical record of a company that played a role in the development and commercialization of treatments for postpartum depression and other brain health conditions before becoming part of Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.