Salarius Pharmaceuticals Stock Price, News & Analysis
Company Description
Salarius Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SLRX) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that has undergone a significant strategic transformation through its merger with Decoy Therapeutics Inc. According to company disclosures and recent news, Salarius historically focused on oncology drug development and is now centering its strategy on Decoy’s peptide-conjugate antiviral and oncology platform while continuing to reference its legacy cancer assets.
Business focus and therapeutic areas
Salarius describes itself as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company with two drug candidates for patients with cancer in need of new treatment options. Its product portfolio includes seclidemstat, the company’s lead candidate, which is being studied in an investigator-initiated Phase 1/2 clinical study in hematologic cancers at MD Anderson Cancer Center as a potential treatment for myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) in patients with limited treatment options. A second asset, SP-3164, is characterized as an oral small molecule protein degrader at the investigational new drug (IND) stage.
Through the completed merger, the combined company is now focused on advancing Decoy’s pipeline of peptide conjugate therapeutics engineered on its proprietary IMP3ACT™ platform. Company materials state that this platform leverages artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and high-speed synthesis techniques to rapidly design, engineer and manufacture peptide conjugate drug candidates that target serious unmet medical needs. The initial pipeline is focused on respiratory viruses and gastrointestinal (GI) cancers.
Transformation to Decoy Therapeutics and planned renaming
Following the strategic merger, Salarius reports that the Decoy business became a wholly owned subsidiary of the company. Subsequent press releases state that Salarius intends to change its corporate name to Decoy Therapeutics Inc. and its Nasdaq ticker symbol to DCOY, with trading under the new symbol expected to commence on the Nasdaq Capital Market. A later announcement confirms that the company will change its corporate name to Decoy Therapeutics Inc. and that its common shares will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker DCOY effective as of the commencement of trading on January 8, 2026. These steps are described as reflecting the company’s focus on next-generation peptide-conjugate therapeutics with applications in viral diseases and oncology.
Company communications explain that the corporate name and ticker change do not affect the total number of shares outstanding, shareholder rights, the CUSIP number or the transfer agent, and are not described as changing the company’s operations. The combined entity emphasizes a platform-driven biotechnology model centered on peptide conjugates and computational design.
Peptide-conjugate and antiviral platform
Public statements describe Decoy Therapeutics as a preclinical-stage biotechnology company that uses ML and AI tools alongside high-speed synthesis techniques to rapidly design, engineer and manufacture peptide conjugate drug candidates. The company’s IMP3ACT platform is characterized as a peptide conjugate drug design and manufacturing platform that leverages machine learning and artificial intelligence tools and allows rapid computational design and manufacturing of peptide conjugate therapeutics, including rapid response to novel viral pathogens such as H5N1 avian flu.
According to company news, Decoy’s drug design engine uses computational tools and fast peptide synthesis technology pioneered in an academic laboratory to engineer and synthesize novel antivirals that directly target highly conserved viral machinery. The platform applies peptide chemistry to design α-helical peptides using computational and machine learning tools and then transforms them into multimeric conjugates by chemically linking copies to lipids or other membrane anchor moieties. Disclosures state that this approach is intended to enhance drug-like properties, dosing flexibility and pharmacokinetics.
The company reports that its technology has produced peptide conjugates effective in vitro against multiple human coronaviruses, including all SARS‑CoV‑2 major variants of concern to date, and against RSV A, RSV B and hPIV3, and in vivo against the SARS‑CoV‑2 delta variant. These statements appear in the company’s own descriptions of its platform and are part of its positioning in the antiviral field.
Pipeline emphasis: respiratory viruses and GI cancers
Across multiple disclosures, the company states that its initial pipeline is focused on respiratory viruses and GI cancers. It highlights a lead pan‑coronavirus antiviral asset that it expects to advance toward an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Additional programs described include a broad-acting antiviral candidate intended to address influenza, COVID‑19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and a peptide drug conjugate targeting GI cancers.
In collaboration with Texas Biomedical Research Institute, the company has announced plans for in vitro testing of Decoy’s peptide conjugate fusion inhibitors across several influenza strains, including H5N1 avian flu. Company statements describe pan‑influenza inhibitors designed on the IMP3ACT platform and note that in silico testing has shown strong binding affinity to viral targets. These efforts are described as part of a broader goal of using the platform to create a single antiviral inhibitor with activity across multiple respiratory viral families.
Oncology heritage and legacy assets
While the strategic focus is shifting toward Decoy’s peptide-conjugate platform, Salarius’ background remains in oncology. The company repeatedly describes itself as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company with two drug candidates for patients with cancer in need of new treatment options. Seclidemstat is highlighted as its lead candidate in hematologic cancers, and SP‑3164 is identified as an oral small molecule protein degrader at the IND stage. Company materials also note prior financial support for seclidemstat in Ewing sarcoma from the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation and a Product Development Award from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas.
In connection with the planned integration of the two businesses, Salarius has stated that the combined company intends to incorporate SP‑3164 into a highly targeted peptide-based proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) drug candidate, linking its legacy oncology program to the peptide-conjugate platform.
Capital markets and listing status
Salarius’ common stock trades on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol SLRX, as reflected in multiple SEC filings and press releases. The company has reported periods of non-compliance and subsequent regaining of compliance with Nasdaq listing standards, including the minimum bid price requirement and the stockholders’ equity standard. It has also disclosed a 1‑for‑15 reverse stock split of its common stock, effected to help meet Nasdaq’s minimum bid price requirement.
An 8‑K filed in early 2026 states that on December 31, 2025, the company received a notice from Nasdaq indicating non-compliance with the minimum bid price requirement and that, due to prior reverse split activity and panel monitoring, it would not automatically receive a standard compliance period. The filing states that the company intends to appeal the delisting determination to a Nasdaq Hearings Panel and that a timely appeal would stay the suspension of the company’s securities and the filing of a Form 25‑NSE pending the panel’s decision. As of that filing, the company’s common stock remained listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol SLRX.
Financing and merger structure
The company’s SEC filings describe a series of registered offerings of common stock, pre-funded warrants and common warrants, as well as the issuance of preferred stock in connection with the Decoy merger. A registration statement on Form S‑1 and subsequent amendments outline offerings of common stock and warrants, with proceeds intended to support research and development programs, repay certain Decoy promissory notes and fund general corporate purposes.
In connection with the merger, Salarius issued Series A Non‑Voting Convertible Preferred Stock and Series B Non‑Voting Convertible Preferred Stock to former Decoy stockholders and debtholders. The preferred stock is described as having economic rights intended to be equivalent to common stock, with limited voting rights and conversion features that depend on stockholder approval and Nasdaq initial listing standards. The Decoy business became a wholly owned subsidiary of Salarius upon completion of the merger, and the combined company has communicated that it is focused on advancing Decoy’s pipeline of peptide conjugate therapeutics.
Collaborations and external support
Company communications state that Decoy has attracted financing from institutional investors and non-dilutive capital from sources such as the Massachusetts Life Sciences Seed Fund, the Google AI startup program and the NVIDIA Inception program. Decoy has also received QuickFire Challenge award funding provided by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) through the BLUE KNIGHT™ collaboration between Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JLABS and BARDA within the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response.
In the antiviral area, the collaboration with Texas Biomedical Research Institute is highlighted as providing in vitro virology testing capabilities for Decoy’s peptide conjugate fusion inhibitors across several influenza strains, including H5N1 avian flu. Company statements describe this relationship as adding testing capabilities to complement the IMP3ACT platform’s design and synthesis strengths.
Corporate governance and stockholder matters
Salarius’ definitive proxy statement for its 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders outlines typical corporate governance matters, including the election of directors, an advisory vote on executive compensation and ratification of the independent registered public accounting firm. The proxy materials describe the use of a virtual annual meeting format and provide information on voting procedures for stockholders of record and beneficial owners.
The company has also disclosed executive employment agreements for senior leaders associated with Decoy, including the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Scientific Officer and Chief Business Officer, detailing base salary, target bonus eligibility, benefits and severance terms in certain termination scenarios. These arrangements are described in Form 8‑K filings and reflect the integration of Decoy’s leadership into the combined company.
Status of SLRX ticker and transition to DCOY
Investors researching the SLRX stock symbol should be aware that it historically represents Salarius Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company with oncology assets and, following the merger, a focus on Decoy’s peptide-conjugate platform. Company announcements state that the corporate name will change to Decoy Therapeutics Inc. and that the Nasdaq ticker symbol will change to DCOY, with trading under DCOY scheduled to begin on January 8, 2026. The SLRX symbol therefore serves as the historical identifier for Salarius during its transition to the Decoy Therapeutics branding and ticker.