Posts related to ‘Drug companies’

Bristol-Myers Cleans Up on Mead Johnson (BMY, MJN)

Money ImageBristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) is going to completely separate itself from its holdings in Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (NYSE: MJN).  The company expects that the split-off will be a tax-advantaged way to divest these holdings and is expected to be net cash flow positive to the BioPharma business and is expected to be accretive to earnings per share beginning in 2010.  Mead Johnson has had one unbelievable year.  This came public in February and traded as low as $25.72 after the IPO.  Shares closed at $45.25 on Friday.
Read More »

Posted on: November 16, 2009 – 9:29 am in Drug companies, Healthcare, IPOs, Mergers and Buy Outs, ,

Next Week’s Top 11 Earnings (INTC, JNJ, ABT, JPM, C, GS, GOOG, IBM, BAC, GE, HAL)

Bull and Bear ImageWe may have had earnings season officially start with Alcoa this week, but next week will be the real week for the launch of earnings season.  We now have an index to track the top 500 companies by market cap on a real-time basis via the 24/7 Wall St. Real-Time 500, and these top 10 earnings next week are generally among the top market caps and/or trading volumes.  In technology we have to look forward to Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), and IBM (NYSE: IBM).  General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) is the conglomerate and Halliburton Company (NYSE: HAL) is the oil entrant.  Financial leaders JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS), and Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) are all due.  Tied to BioHealth are Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) and Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) on deck.

We have detailed the estimates on an earnings basis as far as estimates from Thomson Reuters, and we have also included how much these stocks have rallied since the start of the July quarter and how much these are up from the March 9 closing date that has been widely recognized as the last day of the mayhem before the rapid snap-back rally came into play.
Read More »

Posted on: October 9, 2009 – 12:33 pm in Banking, Calendar, Conglomerates, Drug companies, Earnings, Financial Stocks, Internet, Technology Companies, , , , , , , , , , ,

Potential Breakthrough in Esophagus Cancer (CTIC)

Cell Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTIC) has announced what may be a large breakthrough in the fight against cancer.  This is a combined test rather than as a standalone treatment, but the result may be a huge step in cancer of the lower esophagus.  As many of the ties of one cancer are made to others, you can imagine that the hope might be that this would have other possibilities as well in the fight against other or related cancers.

The company said that a study from Brown University to be presented in the proffered oral session at the Annual Meeting of the International Society of Gastrointestinal Oncology in Philadelphia patients with cancer of the lower esophagus showed a high rate of complete remission when given OPAXIO(TM).  This is paclitaxel poliglumex, which is a biologically enhanced paclitaxel.  This result was shown when OPAXIO was administered in combination with standard cisplatin and concurrent radiation.

Cell Therapeutics noted that the phase II study was led by Dr. Safran and enrolled 40 patients with pathologically-confirmed and locally-advanced adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus or gastro-esophageal junction with no evidence of distant metastasis. These 40 patients received weekly paclitaxel poliglumex and cisplatin for six weeks with concurrent radiation. Of the first 28 patients undergoing surgery, all 8 of the 28 with adenocarcinoma have achieved a pathologic complete remission. No patients required a feeding tube, which differs from historical studies using the standard regimen where the large majority of patients require a feeding tube.

The company said that Paclitaxel poliglumex’s selective radiation enhancement preclinical profile is being validated by the high rates of pathologic complete remission, and by low rates of severe regional side effects observed in this phase 2 study. It also noted that the results justify proceeding to a randomized, controlled trial to definitively prove the clinical benefit observed.  It also plans to speak with the FDA regarding a potential phase III registration strategy for this indication.  Further noted is that this would ‘be the first registration study for a radiation sensitizing agent in this indication.’

As this is a $1.23 stock and has a 52-week trading range of $0.05 to $2.28, you can imagine there will be a lot of trading around this small cap name on Thursday.  Additional results and safety data is offered below.
Read More »

Posted on: October 1, 2009 – 6:31 am in Biotech, Drug companies, FDA, Trading Alert,

BioHealth Business Daily (BMRN, DVAX, SEPR, STEM, PCYC, OCLS)

biotech imageToday is an unusually active day for many emerging biotech stocks in the news and we are seeing significant moves in response. We have more detail on each with appropriate links through to more analysis and data at BioHealthInvestor.com or VSInvestor.com:

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: BMRN) is seeing exponential trading volume in stock and options after a 10% rise today.

Dynavax Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: DVAX) is up over 50%after the FDA removed a clinical hold on its hepatitis treatment.

The fight over the Sepracor, Inc. (NASDAQ: SEPR) acquisition has now gone to the level of a class action status.  We noted the very low P/E and multiple valuations yesterday on this one.

StemCells, Inc. (NASDAQ: STEM) traded slightly higher on word that it will soon begin a study with the University of California, San Francisco Children’s Hospital using purified human neural stem cells as a possible treatment for Pelizaeus-Merzbacher Disease.

Pharmacyclics Inc. (NASDAQ: PCYC) was trading up on news that its right offering is oversubscribed.

Oculus Innovative Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCLS) is trading higher on report that it has been assigned a Medicare HCPCS code for its recently introduced Microcyn Skin & Wound HydroGel.

JON C. OGG
SEPTEMBER 10, 2009

Posted on: September 10, 2009 – 1:38 pm in Biotech, Drug companies, HI/LOW, Trading Alert, , , , , ,

When Key Biotechs Have Low P/E’s & Value Screens (AMGN, BIIB, CEPH, CBST, GENZ, PDLI)

Biotech ImageIt usually takes an event or a series of events for biotech stocks to ever look cheap compared to the overall market or even to sub-sectors within health care.  They generally trade at higher multiples of revenues and with high P/E ratios, assuming they even have real sales-generated revenues and earnings.  But in today’s climate there are many of the large key biotech stocks that are now trading with market-discounts on the P/E ratios and on multiples of revenues as valuation metrics.  We ran a full screen for BioHealthInvestor.com and some of the key names that came up with low P/E and revenue multiples were Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN), Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB), Cephalon Inc. (NASDAQ: CEPH), Cubist Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: CBST), Genzyme Corporation (NASDAQ: GENZ), and PDL BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: PDLI).

There are generally some reasons that have gotten these to cheap screening levels, but some of these are showing significant value for a sector that usually commands a high-premium to most sectors.  Amgen has recovered substantially from its woes, and Biogen has as well.  Genzyme’s troubles allowed it to make the screen with some key caveats, and the valuation screens elsewhere showed that Cephalon, Cubist, and PDL are worth a look.  All of these companies were also well above our screening threshold of $400 million in market cap and average volume of 250,000 shares or more.  These all came in above $1 billion in market cap and most never see under 1 million shares per day in average volume.

The full story is available at BioHealthInvestor.com.

-The 24/7 Wall Street Team

Posted on: August 24, 2009 – 9:54 am in Biotech, Drug companies, Value Investing, , , , , ,

Fidelity’s Top Portfolio Changes (BAC, WFC, GS, MS, JPM, AAPL, MSFT, CSCO, ORCL, XOM, CVX, PFE, ESRX, WYE, GE, SBUX)

money-stack-imageFidelity Management & Research Company, or FMR, was among the giants which released its quarterly holdings over the most recent days.  While it is always interesting to see which holdings are the top holdings, most traders look at the big portfolio changes to try to gain insight into the minds of fund managers. We looked through the top holdings valued at $1 billion or more solely for the Fidelity Management & Research Company unit and we looked for positions where the position changed by more than 10% up or down by measure of share count rather than by the dollar amount.

There were some serious additions in Q2 in the financial sector to its portfolios.  The tech sector saw some mixed changes, while the drug and consumer changes looked lower.  There was a surprise cut in a key conglomerate and a huge add to one of the Battlestar Galactica coffee stocks.

Of the larger changes to its top holdings in financial stocks, FMR’s major large changes were all additional stakes being taken.  WELLS FARGO & CO (NYSE: WFC) was listed as $6.05 billion via 249.45 million shares, a gain of roughly 36 million shares. J.P. MORGAN CHASE & CO INC. (NYSE: JPM) was worth $5.44 billion from a stake of almost 159.6 million shares, a gain of over 7.1 million shares. BANK OF AMERICA CORP. (NYSE: BAC) was listed as $4.17 billion via a stake of 315.9 million shares, but that is effectively a doubling in size of shares from its Q1 reporting.  GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC. (NYSE: GS) was listed as a $3.44 billion stake via 23.35 million shares, a gain of roughly 7 million shares of stock. MORGAN STANLEY (NYSE: MS) was a stake worth some $2.5 billion via some 87.8 million shares, also more than double its previous shares listed.

APPLE INC. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is one of its top few holdings at $5.96 billion, and this was a gain of more than 10% to 4,59 million shares. MICROSOFT CORP. (NASDAQ: MSFT) was a huge gain by almost one-third of its stake to some 163 million shares of stock worth a reported $3.87 billion. ORACLE CORP. (NASDAQ: ORCL) was listed as being worth some $2.79 billion via 130.3 million shares, a gain of about 15.3 million shares.  IBM (IBM) was worth $1.00 billion via 9.62 million shares, but this is after a drop of roughly 4.3 million shares.
Read More »

Posted on: August 17, 2009 – 4:58 pm in Banking, Drug companies, Financial Stocks, Insider Activity, Mutual Funds, Oil & Gas, Technology Companies, Telecom, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The War On Diabetes Heats Up (NVO, AMLN, LLY, MNKD, PFE, VVUS, BMY, AZN, ARNA, GERN, STEM, OREX, GNBT, SPEX, ORMP, HDIX, PODD)

Biotech ImageDiabetes is becoming an epidemic in the U.S. and the Western World.  The ties to obesity are often direct, so the potential treatments are often directly tied as well.  We did a recent dig down for the next $170 billion opportunity for eight different major diseases and conditions, and now we have conducted a much deeper dig down specifically in the field of diabetes over at BioHealthInvestor.com.  We have recent and upcoming FDA action and data being presented from Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO), MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD), Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMLN), Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY), Alkermes Inc. (NASDAQ: ALKS), Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) and AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN).  There is a mini-race going on between some of the later stage studies from obesity and diabetes candidates from Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARNA), VIVUS, inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS), Orexigen Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: OREX) and Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: AMLN).  Geron Corporation (NASDAQ: GERN) and StemCells Inc. (NASDAQ: STEM) were noted as two of the stem cell hopes, although stem cells may later rather than sooner.

Generex Biotechnology Corporation (NASDAQ: GNBT), Spherix Incorporated (NASDAQ: SPEX) and Oramed Pharmaceuticals Inc. (OTCBB: ORMP) were all noted in the much smaller or emerging plays.  Home Diagnostics, Inc. (NASDAQ:HDIX) and Insulet Corporation (NASDAQ: PODD) have both recently had key events as the interest in test equipment companies continues to remain high.

FULL STORY with much more detail at BioHealthInvestor.com.

Posted on: August 10, 2009 – 10:56 am in Biotech, Drug companies, FDA, Healthcare, Medical, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

MannKind Raises Over $50 Million (MNKD, PFE)

Money Stack ImageMannKind Corporation (NASDAQ: MNKD) is getting hit after the company announced that it priced a secondary offering of 7,400,000 shares of its common stock.  While the press release does not say what price the deal came at, the syndicate group told us this went out at $7.35 per share.  The company’s chairman, CEO, and principal stockholder, Alfred E. Mann, is purchasing 1,000,000 of these shares from the underwriters.
Read More »

Posted on: August 5, 2009 – 9:55 am in Biotech, Drug companies, Secondary Offering, ,

What If Swine Flu Cases Have Peaked?

biotechIt is an audacious statement, but Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer of the UK, believes that swine flu cases may have peaked at about 110,000. He sees evidence that the number of people contracting the disease has leveled off. He admits that the flu may be back in the fall, but he does not insist that it will be. Read More »

Posted on: July 31, 2009 – 6:08 am in Drug companies

Europe Steps Up Timetable On Swine Flu Vaccines (VICL, NVAX, BCRX)

earthShares of vaccine makers including Vical Inc. ((Nasdaq: VICL), Novavax Inc. (Nasdaq: NVAX) and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: BCRX) all are up strongly Monday after Europe’s version of the FDA decided to fast-track swine flu vaccine testing, making producers of the yet-to-be-approved inoculations potentially closer to bringing their products to market. Read More »

Posted on: July 27, 2009 – 10:53 am in Biotech, Drug companies, Pharmaceuticals, , ,

Bristol-Myers Gets Key Assets With A Medarex Deal (BMY, MEDX, ABT, JNJ, AMGN, WYE)

biotech

Bristol Myers Inc. (NYSE: BMY) plans to spend $2.4 billion to buy partner Medarex Inc. (Nasdaq: MEDX). It will get a great deal beyond the cancer monoclonal antibody that developed together.

The Medarex pipeline has substantial value.

The monoclonal antibody ipilimumab is by far the main reason that Bristol pulled the trigger. It is currently in Phase III trials for both metastatic melanoma and hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Read More »

Posted on: July 23, 2009 – 9:12 am in Drug companies, Editor's Picks, Mergers and Buy Outs, Pharmaceuticals, , , , ,

Drug Firms Look For Big Profits In Swine Flu Treatments

biotechThe swine flue is apparently more dangerous that the garden variety of flu that has been part of the world health picture for several decades. It is more likely to cause pneumonia and other complications.

Drug companies hate to be left out of treating widespread diseases, so several are racing to get out vaccines for swine flu for release are soon as the beginning of next year. Read More »

Posted on: July 23, 2009 – 5:06 am in Drug companies, Pharmaceuticals,

The Next Blockbuster Drugs: A $170 Billion Opportunity

biotech

Safety and efficacy data are critical to drug candidates. But what really makes a potential drug attractive is strong top-line data, a new biotech-based treatment, and a massive potential market.

With help from Thomson Pharma and our own backlog of coverage, BioHealthInvestor.com, a 247wallst.com website, sought to find the most promising biopharmaceutical candidate from both biotech and pharmaceutical companies in each of the top 10 most prevalent medical conditions in the U.S. Read More »

Posted on: July 22, 2009 – 4:01 am in Biotech, Drug companies, Editor's Picks, Pharmaceuticals, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Apple (APPL) And Caterpillar (CAT): Someone, Somewhere, Somehow, Is Spending Money

appleApple’s beat Wall St. consensus figures by posting earnings per share of $1.35 compared to Wall St. expectations of $1.17. The company also produced revenue of $8.33 billion, up 12% from last year. The recession must be over.

Apple’s figures are a conundrum. The firm sold 5.2 million iPhones in the quarter ending in June. A lot of people are using unemployment benefits to buy the handsets, or people who are supposed to be saving money and not spending it, according to the government, are running up the balances on their credit cards as if the economic downturn never happened. Read More »

Posted on: July 22, 2009 – 3:50 am in Banking, Consumer Electronics, Drug companies, Earnings, Editor's Picks, Food, Healthcare, PC Companies, Pharmaceuticals, Wireless, , , , ,

Media Digest 7/21/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   Microsoft (MSFT) is putting more R&D in India.

Reuters:   CIT (CIT) confirmed that it rasied $3 billion.

Reuters:   Bernanke said Fed can control inflation.

Reuters:   California lawmakers agreed to a state budget.

Reuters:   Small business  groups are  seeking help to keep companies afloat.

Reuters:    TI (TXN) profits and outlook beat expectations. Read More »

Posted on: July 21, 2009 – 2:53 am in Banking, Compensation, Drug companies, Earnings, Healthcare, Housing, Internet, Media, Oil & Gas, Old Media, Press Digest, Research, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Biotech & BioHealth Business Daily (PFE, MRK, BAX, BDSI, SPPI, GNBT, AVII, CEGE, BBH, GILD, LLY, SNY, BMY, OSIP)

Here are some of today’s top stories affecting key drug and biotech stocks, accompanied with links through to more detailed information and analysis at BioHealthInvestor.com:

New short-interest data suggest traders are now increasing their directional bets against biotech stocks. Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) and Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK) are in the top 10 of all large-cap stocks with the greatest increase in the number of shares shorted.

Eli Lilly has the FDA’s OK to market its Effient blood thinner, but the black-box warning on its label is so strong that it’s hard to believe it can dent the market share of the Sanofi Aventis (NYSE: SNY)/ Bristol Myers Inc. (NYSE: BMY) drug Plavix.

OSI Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: OSIP) announced new data from its Phase III Saturn study of Tarceva, and it’s likely an incremental positive for the cancer drug over rival Eli Lilly & Co.’s (NYSE: LLY) drug Altima.

-The 24/7 Wall St. Team

Posted on: July 13, 2009 – 10:25 am in Biotech, Drug companies, Medical, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Biotech Business Daily (RIGL, BIIB, ARRY, ALNY, FOLD, HALO, AOB, STEM)

Here are some of the top stories affecting key drug and biotech stocks that have links through to more in-depth coverage and analysis today at the website BioHealthInvestor.com:

Rigel Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s (NASDAQ: RIGL) Phase IIb trial results Thursday morning of its rheumatoid arthritis candidate R788, is boosting its stock on speculation it may help the company attract a clinical partner.

Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) is enjoying a second day of gains after its new PEGylated interferon beta-1a (BIIB017) for relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS) received an FDA Fast Track designation.  This might be a game-changing event for the company with some risks as well.

Array BioPharma Inc. (Nasdaq: ARRY) now says it will discontinue development of ARRY-797 in chronic inflammatory diseases. Attention may now turn to Array’s ARRY-162, another anti-inflammatory that showed much more promising efficacy.

Also, see our in-depth feature this week on five fast-growing biotechs with improving analyst estimates: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ALNY), Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: FOLD), Halozyme Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: HALO), American Oriental Bioengineering Inc. (NYSE: AOB), and Stemcells Inc. (Nasdaq: STEM).

-The 24/7 Wall St. Team

Posted on: July 9, 2009 – 11:09 am in Biotech, Drug companies, FDA, Medical, , , , , , , ,

BioHealth Business Daily (AMGN, NVS, AMLN, LLY, ALKS, NVO, LLY, VICL, SCLN, ARNA)

These are some of the top stories affecting key drug and biotech stocks that are covered with more in-depth details and analysis this morning at BioHealthInvestor.com:

Amgen Inc’s (Nasdaq: AMGN)’s osteoporosis drug did so well in a head-to-head Phase III trial vs. the current standard drug from Novartis Inc. (NYSE:  NVS) that the Amgen’s drug may become the new standard for patients with breast cancer.

Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: AMLN), along with partners Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE: LLY) and Alkermes Inc. (Nasdaq: ALKS), announced its new drug application for a once-weekly version of Byetta will be reviewed by the FDA, which may  help invigorate growth for the franchise.

Vical Inc. (Nasdaq: VICL) announced a positive four-month interim analysis for what is arguably its second-largest market opportunity, taking potentially another small step toward the goal of attracting a partner for its herpes vaccine program.

SciClone Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: SCLN) shares are down more than 7 percent on revenue and secondary offering fears. And Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ARNA) shares are falling after another dilutive offering.

Also, see our in-depth feature this week on five of the fastest-growing biotechs with improving analyst estimates: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ALNY), Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: FOLD), Halozyme Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: HALO), American Oriental Bioengineering Inc. (NYSE: AOB), and Stemcells Inc. (Nasdaq: STEM).

-The 24/7 Wall St. Team

Posted on: July 8, 2009 – 9:47 am in Biotech, Drug companies, FDA, Medical, , , , , , , , ,

BioHealth Business Daily (CI, AET, MYL, JAZZ, PTIE, GSK, ALNY, FOLD, HALO, AOB, STEM)

Here are some of the top stories affecting key drug and biotech stocks that are covered in-depth today at BioHealthInvestor.com:

Cigna corp. (NYSE: CI), Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET), and other managed care companies are rising despite making health care reform concessions, as shareholders see they have a seat at the bargaining table.

Mylan Inc. (NASDAQ: MYL) has received FDA approval for a generic version of an AstraZeneca (AZN) prostate cancer drug — a rather unusual new generic.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: JAZZ) shares are up more than 25 percent after the company took steps to ease a cash crunch that had curtailed drug development.

King Pharmaceuticals (KG) and Pain Therapeutics (PTIE) said  they expect to resubmit a new drug application in mid-2010, slightly later than anticipated.

GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) announced a positive study on its Cervarix vaccine, although it’s unclear if the company can play catch-up to Merck & Co.’s (NYSE: MRK) Gardasil.

See our in-depth feature this week on five fast-growing biotechs with improving analyst estimates: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ALNY), Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: FOLD), Halozyme Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: HALO), American Oriental Bioengineering Inc. (NYSE: AOB), and Stemcells Inc. (Nasdaq: STEM).

-The 24/7 Wall St. Team

Posted on: July 7, 2009 – 11:03 am in Biotech, Drug companies, FDA, Medical, Trading Alert, , , , , , , , , , ,

The Best Short-Selling Opportunities Of The Year (C)(GE)(F)(SBUX)(SIRI)

angrybearThere is still some conversation about the federal government restricting short-selling activity in certain stocks. The counterargument to these restrictions is that short selling plays an important role in the valuation of securities by efficiently allowing investors to bet that a stock will fall as readily as they can bet that it will rise. Short sellers have the reputation, whether deserved or not, for trying to manipulate information about public companies with the hope of driving their prices down. That may be true.

24/7 Wall St. has come up with a list of the best short-selling opportunities between now and the end of the year. The list was chosen based on: 1) trading volume, 2) the total short position in the stock over the first half of the year, 3) a history of the short position in these stocks rising or falling rapidly, and 4) stocks in companies that tend to move on news throughout the year and not just on earnings information. Read More »

Posted on: July 5, 2009 – 5:54 pm in Airlines, Analyst Calls, Autos, Banking, Biotech, Casinos, Conglomerates, Consumer Electronics, Dividend, Drug companies, Editor's Picks, FDA, Green Biz, Hardware, Healthcare, Infrastructure, Internet, Large Cap Stocks, Medical, PC Companies, Pharmaceuticals, Private Equity, Retail, Short Interest, Software, Technology, Turnarounds, Wireless, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,