Nuvalent, Inc. (NUVL)

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our condensed consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Quarterly Report and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, as filed with the SEC on February 26, 2026 (2025 Form 10-K). Some of the information contained in this discussion and analysis or set forth elsewhere in this Quarterly Report, including information with respect to our plans and strategy for our business, includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. As a result of many factors, including those factors set forth in the “Item 1A. Risk Factors” section of this Quarterly Report and our other filings with the SEC, our actual results could differ materially from the results described in, or implied by, the forward-looking statements contained in the following discussion and analysis.

Overview

We are a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on creating precisely targeted therapies for patients with cancer. We leverage our team’s deep expertise in chemistry and structure-based drug design to develop innovative small molecules that are designed with the aim to overcome the limitations of existing therapies for clinically proven kinase targets.

Limitations faced by currently available kinase inhibitors can include (i) kinase resistance, or the emergence of new mutations in the kinase target that can enable resistance to existing therapies, (ii) kinase selectivity, or the potential for existing therapies to inhibit other structurally similar kinase targets and lead to off-target adverse events, and (iii) limited brain penetrance, or the ability for the therapy to treat disease that has spread or metastasized to the brain. By prioritizing target selectivity, we believe our drug candidates have the potential to overcome resistance, avoid dose-limiting off-target adverse events, address brain metastases, and drive more durable responses. This may result in the potential to drive deeper, more durable responses with minimal adverse events, and we believe these potential benefits may support opportunities for clinical utility earlier in the treatment paradigm.

Candidate Overview

Zidesamtinib (NVL-520)

Our first lead product candidate, zidesamtinib (NVL-520), is being developed for patients with ROS proto-oncogene 1 (ROS1)-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Zidesamtinib is a novel ROS1-selective inhibitor designed with the aim to address the clinical challenges of emergent treatment resistance, central nervous system (CNS)-related adverse events, and brain metastases that may limit the use of currently available ROS1 tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). Zidesamtinib has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Breakthrough Therapy designation for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic (advanced) ROS1-positive NSCLC who have previously been treated with two or more prior ROS1 TKIs, and orphan drug designation for ROS1-positive NSCLC.

Our ARROS-1 clinical trial is a first-in-human global Phase 1/2, multicenter, open-label, dose-escalation and expansion study evaluating zidesamtinib as an oral monotherapy in patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC and other solid tumors. Dosing was initiated in the Phase 1 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial in January 2022. From January 2022 to August 2023, the Phase 1 portion of the ARROS-1 trial enrolled 104 patients (99 NSCLC, 5 other solid tumors).

In September 2023, we announced the initiation of the Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial, following alignment with the FDA on a recommended Phase 2 dose (RP2D) of 100 mg once daily (QD). The Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial is designed to evaluate the safety and activity of zidesamtinib in patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC and other solid tumors, examining several specific cohorts of patients based on the prior anti-cancer therapies that such patients have received. The Phase 2 cohorts have been designed to support potential registration in TKI-naïve and/or TKI pre-treated ROS1-positive NSCLC patients.

Between September 2023 and June 16, 2025, 435 patients were enrolled in the Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial. In June 2025, we announced positive pivotal data for zidesamtinib in TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC from the global ARROS-1 Phase 1/2 clinical trial, and in September 2025, we presented the pivotal dataset at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 2025 World Conference on Lung Cancer. The primary efficacy analysis population for this pivotal dataset consisted of 117 TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC with measurable disease who received zidesamtinib at the RP2D by May 31, 2024, with duration of response (DOR) follow-up of at least 6 months available for nearly all responders.

In June 2025, we also shared encouraging preliminary data from 35 TKI-naïve patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC treated with zidesamtinib at RP2D as of August 31, 2024 in the Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial. As of June 16, 2025, a total of 104 patients had been enrolled in the ongoing TKI-naïve cohort of the ARROS-1 trial.

In November 2025, the FDA accepted for filing our New Drug Application (NDA) for zidesamtinib for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic ROS1-positive NSCLC who received at least 1 prior ROS1 TKI. The application has been assigned a Prescription Drug User Fee Act target action date of September 18, 2026. Additionally, we plan to submit data from the

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TKI-naïve cohort in the Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial to the FDA in the second half of 2026 to support a potential label expansion of zidesamtinib in TKI-naïve patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC.

Neladalkib (NVL-655)

Our second lead product candidate, neladalkib (NVL-655), is being developed for patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive NSCLC. Neladalkib is a brain-penetrant ALK-selective inhibitor designed with the aim to address the clinical challenges of emergent treatment resistance, CNS-related adverse events, and brain metastases that may limit the use of first-generation (1G; crizotinib), second-generation (2G; ceritinib, alectinib, or brigatinib), and third-generation (3G; lorlatinib) ALK inhibitors. Neladalkib has received FDA Breakthrough Therapy designation for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic ALK-positive NSCLC who have been previously treated with two or more ALK TKIs, and orphan drug designation for ALK-positive NSCLC.

Our ALKOVE-1 clinical trial is a first-in-human global Phase 1/2, multicenter, open-label, dose-escalation and expansion study evaluating neladalkib as an oral monotherapy in patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC and other solid tumors. Dosing was initiated in the Phase 1 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial in June 2022. From June 2022 to February 2024, the Phase 1 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial enrolled 133 patients (131 NSCLC, 2 other solid tumors).

In February 2024, we announced the initiation of the Phase 2 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial, following alignment with the FDA on a RP2D of 150 mg QD. The Phase 2 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial is designed to evaluate the safety and activity of neladalkib in several expansion cohorts of patients defined based on the number and type of prior anti-cancer therapies they have received. The Phase 2 cohorts are designed with registrational intent for TKI pre-treated patients with ALK-positive NSCLC and to enable preliminary evaluation for patients with ALK-positive NSCLC who are TKI-naïve.

In July 2025, we announced the initiation of the ALKAZAR Phase 3 clinical trial with registrational intent for TKI-naïve patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC. The ALKAZAR clinical trial is a global, randomized, controlled trial designed to evaluate neladalkib versus the current standard of care. Patients are randomized 1:1 to receive neladalkib monotherapy or ALECENSA (alectinib) monotherapy, reflecting input from collaborating physician-scientists and alignment with global regulatory agencies. The ALKAZAR clinical trial is designed to enroll approximately 450 patients with TKI-naïve ALK-positive NSCLC. The primary endpoint is progression-free survival (PFS) based on Blinded Independent Central Review (BICR). Secondary endpoints include overall survival, PFS based on investigator’s assessment, time to intracranial response, and BICR assessment of intracranial objective response rate, intracranial duration of response, objective response rate, DOR, time to intracranial progression, and safety.

At the European Society for Medical Oncology Congress in October 2025, we presented preliminary data for neladalkib in patients with advanced ALK-positive solid tumors outside of NSCLC from the ongoing ALKOVE-1 clinical trial. Neladalkib demonstrated encouraging preliminary activity across a diverse set of ALK TKI-naïve and previously treated advanced ALK-positive solid tumors, and was considered generally safe and well-tolerated with a preliminary overall safety profile consistent with its ALK-selective, tropomyosin receptor kinase (TRK)-sparing design, and with previously reported data.

In November 2025, we announced positive topline data for neladalkib in TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC from the global ALKOVE-1 Phase 1/2 clinical trial. The primary analysis population for this topline dataset consisted of 253 TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC with measurable disease who received neladalkib at the RP2D by September 30, 2024, with DOR follow-up of at least 6 months available for nearly all responders.

In November 2025, we also shared preliminary data from the Phase 2 exploratory cohort for TKI-naïve patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC from the ALKOVE-1 study. Encouraging preliminary data were available for 44 TKI-naïve patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC treated with neladalkib at RP2D as of August 29, 2025.

In April 2026, we announced the submission of our NDA for neladalkib in TKI pre-treated advanced ALK-positive NSCLC to the FDA. The application is based on data in TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC treated with neladalkib in the ALKOVE-1 study. In this population, neladalkib demonstrated encouraging overall activity, including intracranial responses, the ability to address key drivers of disease progression, and a generally well-tolerated safety profile consistent with its ALK-selective, TRK-sparing design. We plan to present pivotal data for neladalkib in TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC from the ALKOVE-1 study, in addition to preliminary data for TKI-naïve patients, during an oral presentation at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting.

NVL-330

Our third product candidate, NVL-330, is a brain-penetrant human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-selective inhibitor designed with the aim to address the combined medical needs of treating tumors driven by HER2 mutations and alterations, including HER2 exon 20 insertion mutations (HER2ex20), treating brain metastases, and avoiding treatment-limiting adverse events including due to off-target inhibition of wild-type epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Preclinical data have shown that NVL-330 inhibited a broad range of HER2 oncogenic alterations, including HER2ex20, in cell-based assays, was brain penetrant and was selective for HER2 oncogenic alterations over the structurally related wild-type EGFR. Additionally, new preclinical data were

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presented at the AACR-NCI

[Excerpt truncated for page length; source filing is linked above.]

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report. Some of the information contained in this discussion and analysis or set forth elsewhere in this Annual Report, including information with respect to our plans and strategy for our business, includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. For a detailed discussion of our business environment, please read Item 1. Business, included in this Annual Report. As a result of many factors, including those factors set forth in Item 1A. Risk Factors of this Annual Report, our actual results could differ materially from the results described in, or implied by, the forward-looking statements contained in the following discussion and analysis.

Overview

We are a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on creating precisely targeted therapies for patients with cancer. We leverage our team’s deep expertise in chemistry and structure-based drug design to develop innovative small molecules that are designed with the aim to overcome the limitations of existing therapies for clinically proven kinase targets.

Limitations faced by currently available kinase inhibitors can include (i) kinase resistance, or the emergence of new mutations in the kinase target that can enable resistance to existing therapies, (ii) kinase selectivity, or the potential for existing therapies to inhibit other structurally similar kinase targets and lead to off-target adverse events, and (iii) limited brain penetrance, or the ability for the therapy to treat disease that has spread or metastasized to the brain. By prioritizing target selectivity, we believe our drug candidates have the potential to overcome resistance, avoid dose-limiting off-target adverse events, address brain metastases, and drive more durable responses. This may result in the potential to drive deeper, more durable responses with minimal adverse events, and we believe these potential benefits may support opportunities for clinical utility earlier in the treatment paradigm.

Candidate Overview

Zidesamtinib (NVL-520)

Our first lead product candidate, zidesamtinib (NVL-520), is being developed for patients with ROS proto-oncogene 1 (ROS1)-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Zidesamtinib is a novel ROS1-selective inhibitor designed with the aim to address the clinical challenges of emergent treatment resistance, central nervous system (CNS)-related adverse events, and brain metastases that may limit the use of currently available ROS1 tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). Zidesamtinib has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Breakthrough Therapy designation for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic (advanced) ROS1-positive NSCLC who have previously been treated with two or more prior ROS1 TKIs, and orphan drug designation for ROS1-positive NSCLC.

Our ARROS-1 clinical trial is a first-in-human global Phase 1/2, multicenter, open-label, dose-escalation and expansion study evaluating zidesamtinib as an oral monotherapy in patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC and other solid tumors. Dosing was initiated in the Phase 1 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial in January 2022. From January 2022 to August 2023, the Phase 1 portion of the ARROS-1 trial enrolled 104 patients (99 NSCLC, 5 other solid tumors).

In September 2023, we announced the initiation of the Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial, following alignment with the FDA on a recommended Phase 2 dose (RP2D) of 100 mg once daily (QD). The Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial is designed to evaluate the safety and activity of zidesamtinib in patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC and other solid tumors, examining several specific cohorts of patients based on the prior anti-cancer therapies that such patients have received. The Phase 2 cohorts have been designed to support potential registration in TKI-naïve and/or TKI pre-treated ROS1-positive NSCLC patients.

Between September 2023 and June 16, 2025, 435 patients were enrolled in the Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial. In June 2025, we announced positive pivotal data for zidesamtinib in TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC from the global ARROS-1 Phase 1/2 clinical trial, and in September 2025, we presented the pivotal dataset at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 2025 World Conference on Lung Cancer. The primary efficacy analysis population for this pivotal dataset consisted of 117 TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC with measurable disease who received zidesamtinib at the RP2D by May 31, 2024, with duration of response (DOR) follow-up of at least 6 months available for nearly all responders.

In June 2025, we also shared preliminary data from the Phase 2 TKI-naïve cohort in the ARROS-1 clinical trial, in which enrollment is ongoing. Encouraging preliminary data were available for 35 TKI-naïve patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC treated with zidesamtinib at RP2D as of August 31, 2024. As of June 16, 2025, a total of 104 patients had been enrolled in the ongoing TKI-naïve cohort of the ARROS-1 trial.

In November 2025, the FDA accepted for filing our New Drug Application (NDA) for zidesamtinib for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic ROS1-positive NSCLC who received at least 1 prior ROS1 TKI. The application has been assigned a Prescription Drug User Fee Act target action date of September 18, 2026. Additionally, we plan to submit data from the ongoing TKI-naïve cohort in the Phase 2 portion of the ARROS-1 clinical trial to the FDA to support a potential label expansion of zidesamtinib in TKI-naïve patients with advanced ROS1-positive NSCLC in the second half of 2026.

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Neladalkib (NVL-655)

Our second lead product candidate, neladalkib (NVL-655), is being developed for patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive NSCLC. Neladalkib is a brain-penetrant ALK-selective inhibitor designed with the aim to address the clinical challenges of emergent treatment resistance, CNS-related adverse events, and brain metastases that may limit the use of first-generation (1G; crizotinib), second-generation (2G; ceritinib, alectinib, or brigatinib), and third-generation (3G; lorlatinib) ALK inhibitors. Neladalkib has received FDA Breakthrough Therapy designation for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic ALK-positive NSCLC who have been previously treated with two or more ALK TKIs, and orphan drug designation for ALK-positive NSCLC.

Our ALKOVE-1 clinical trial is a first-in-human global Phase 1/2, multicenter, open-label, dose-escalation and expansion study evaluating neladalkib as an oral monotherapy in patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC and other solid tumors. Dosing was initiated in the Phase 1 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial in June 2022. From June 2022 to February 2024, the Phase 1 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial enrolled 133 patients (131 NSCLC, 2 other solid tumors).

In February 2024, we announced the initiation of the Phase 2 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial, following alignment with the FDA on a RP2D of 150 mg QD. The Phase 2 portion of the ALKOVE-1 clinical trial is designed to evaluate the safety and activity of neladalkib in several expansion cohorts of patients defined based on the number and type of prior anti-cancer therapies they have received. The Phase 2 cohorts are designed with registrational intent for TKI pre-treated patients with ALK-positive NSCLC and to enable preliminary evaluation for patients with ALK-positive NSCLC who are TKI-naïve.

In July 2025, we announced the initiation of the ALKAZAR Phase 3 clinical trial with registrational intent for TKI-naïve patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC. The ALKAZAR clinical trial is a global, randomized, controlled trial designed to evaluate neladalkib versus the current standard of care. Patients are randomized 1:1 to receive neladalkib monotherapy or ALECENSA (alectinib) monotherapy, reflecting input from collaborating physician-scientists and alignment with global regulatory agencies. The ALKAZAR clinical trial is designed to enroll approximately 450 patients with TKI-naïve ALK-positive NSCLC. The primary endpoint is progression-free survival (PFS) based on Blinded Independent Central Review (BICR). Secondary endpoints include overall survival, PFS based on investigator’s assessment, time to intracranial response, and BICR assessment of intracranial objective response rate, intracranial duration of response, objective response rate, DOR, time to intracranial progression, and safety.

At the European Society for Medical Oncology Congress in October 2025, we presented preliminary data for neladalkib in patients with advanced ALK-positive solid tumors outside of NSCLC from the ongoing ALKOVE-1 clinical trial. Neladalkib demonstrated encouraging preliminary activity across a diverse set of ALK TKI-naïve and previously treated advanced ALK-positive solid tumors, and was considered generally safe and well-tolerated with a preliminary overall safety profile consistent with its ALK-selective, tropomyosin receptor kinase-sparing design, and with previously reported data.

In November 2025, we announced positive topline data for neladalkib in TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC from the global ALKOVE-1 Phase 1/2 clinical trial. The primary analysis population for this topline dataset consisted of 253 TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC with measurable disease who received neladalkib at the RP2D by September 30, 2024, with DOR follow-up of at least 6 months available for nearly all responders.

In November 2025, we also shared preliminary data from the Phase 2 exploratory cohort for TKI-naïve patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC from the ALKOVE-1 study. Encouraging preliminary data were available for 44 TKI-naïve patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC treated with neladalkib at RP2D as of August 29, 2025.

We have completed our pre-NDA meeting with the FDA and plan to move forward with an NDA submission of the data for TKI pre-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC from our ALKOVE-1 study of neladalkib in the first half of 2026. We plan to present detailed study results at a future medical meeting.

NVL-330

Our third product candidate, NVL-330, is a brain-penetrant human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-selective inhibitor designed with the aim to address the combined medical needs of treating tumors driven by HER2 mutations and alterations, including HER2 exon 20 insertion mutations (HER2ex20), treating brain metastases, and avoiding treatment-limiting adverse events including due to off-target inhibition of wild-type epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Preclinical data have shown that NVL-330 inhibited a broad range of HER2 oncogenic alterations, including HER2ex20, in cell-based assays, was brain penetrant and was selective for HER2 oncogenic alterations over the structurally related wild-type EGFR. Additionally, new preclinical data were presented at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in October 2025, further supporting NVL-330’s potentially differentiated brain-penetrant profile. Compared to several currently available and investigational HER2 TKIs in the same preclinical assays, NVL-330 demonstrated a favorable efflux ratio and brain partitioning, metrics that are potentially positive predictors of brain exposure in humans. In preclinical models of intracranial activity, NVL-330 induced deep intracranial regression in mice. In the same models, the

[Excerpt truncated for page length; the complete text is on the linked full-MD&A page.]