Posts for Ticker ‘BIIB’

Top 10 Analyst Upgrades, Downgrades, Initiations (BIIB, INCY, MOT, CMCSA, JWN, ODP, PALM, RIMM, RCL, YUM)

These are this Monday’s top ten analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research firms:

Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.
Incyte Corporation (NASDAQ: INCY) Started as Outperform at Leerink Swann.
Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) Cut to Hold at Kaufman Bros.
Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Office Depot (NYSE: ODP) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
Research-in-Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
Royal Caribbean (NYSE: RCL) Raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.
YUM! Brands (NYSE: YUM) Raised to Outperform at RBC Capital.

You can join our open email distribution list to get updates on top analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader alerts, IPO’s, secondary offerings, Warren Buffett and other guru activity, M&A and more.

JON C. OGG

Posted on: November 2, 2009 – 9:25 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , , ,

BioTech Hostile Takeover: Biogen Plays For Facet

Facet Biotech Corporation (FACT) confirms that it is in receipt of Biogen Idec Inc.’s (BIIB) letter dated September 4, 2009 offering $14.50 per share for all of the outstanding shares of Facet.

Facet shares rocketed 75% to $15.75 after being halted briefly. So far this year, Facet’s shares have traded as low as $6 and as high as $11, so the deal is at a significant premium.

The deal is hostile. Biogen has asked to meet with the Facet board.

Reuters reports that“Biogen Idec said the offer was lower than an initial offer of $15 per share it had made on Aug. 17 to Facet Chief Executive Officer Faheem Hasnain, followed by a letter from Biogen Idec to Hasnain and Facet’s board on Aug. 21 offering that price.”

A recent deal between Facet and Trubion Pharmaceuticals (TRBN) which Facet believed was in its best interests was not taken well by shareholders who have pushed the stock down.

Biogen and Facet are  jointly developing a drug for multiple sclerosis and a treatment for solid tumors.

Facet is low on cash and the company’s management has indicated that it may have to bring in new funds in a year.

Douglas A. McIntyre

For more biotech news visit BioHealthInvestor.com

Posted on: September 4, 2009 – 3:48 pm in Biotech, Mergers and Buy Outs, , ,

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (BIIB, FRX, GENZ, GILD, HOLX, LVS, MOS, NVAX, RIG, TXT)

These are the top ten analyst research initiations, upgrades, and downgrades we have seen from top Wall Street firms early this Wednesday morning:

Biogen-Idec (BIIB) Started as Underperform at BofA/Merrill Lynch.
Forest Labs (FRX) Cut to Hold at Needham.
Genzyme (GENZ) Started as Buy at BofA/Merrill Lynch.
Gilead (GILD) Started as Buy at BofA/Merrill Lynch.
Hologic (HOLX) Cut to Hold at Canaccord.
Las Vegas Sands (LVS) Raised to Buy at Argus.
Mosaic (MOS) Started as Sector Perform at CIBC.
Novavax (NVAX) Cut to Market Perform at Rodman & Renshaw.
Transocean (RIG) Started as Outperform at BMO Capital.
Textron (TXT) Raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

JON C. OGG

Posted on: September 2, 2009 – 8:21 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , , ,

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, , , , , ,

Media Digest 8/7/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NY Times, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   A college education no longer means easy employment in China.

Reuters:   Fannie Mae (FNM) lost $14.8 billion.

Reuters:   The auto “clunkers” legislation passed the Senate.

Reuters:   Obama is in no rush to decide Bernanke’s appointment to a new term. Read More »

Posted on: August 7, 2009 – 4:05 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Biotech Business Daily (BIIB, VRTX, ALNY, STEM)

Here are some of the top stories affecting key drug and biotech stocks this Friday.  We also have links through to more detailed coverage and analysis at BioHealthInvestor.com:

Biogen Idec Inc. (Nasdaq: BIIB) kicks off the earnings season for the large biotech companies next week. We have a full earnings preview with current expectations and the bias.  A decline in analyst sentiment for the stock might set up the company for a slight earnings surprise, on the back of recent price increases for its high-profile multiple sclerosis drug Avonex.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: VRTX) this morning said it will sell its rights to milestone payments tied to its hepatitis C drug telaprevir in Europe, a possible sign that the launch of the drug with partner Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) for 2011 may be on track.

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 10, 2009 – 10:07 am in Biotech, , , ,

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, , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 8/30/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   Cybercrime is spreading fast on Facebook.

Reuters:   GM will seek to sell most of its assets to a new company.

Reuters:    Madoff got 150 years in prison.

Reuters:   AIG (AIG) shareholders will elect new directors.

Reuters:   GM is close to a deal to sell Opel.

Reuters:   A jury returned a $1.7 billion drug verdict against Abbot (ABT). Read More »

Posted on: June 30, 2009 – 3:03 am in Drug companies, Hardware, Healthcare, Medical, Mergers and Buy Outs, Oil & Gas, Press Digest, Wireless, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 6/10/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters: The Supreme Court delays  Chrysler deal.

Reuters:   The cleared ten banks to repay TARP include JPMorgan (JPM), Goldmand Sachs (GS), American Express (AXP), Cpaital One(COF), State Street (STT), BBT (BBT), Morgan Stanley (MS), and US Bancorp (USB).

Reuters:   Senate Democrats revealed healthcare bill.

Reuters:   New York Times (NYT) will not close the Boston Globe Read More »

Posted on: June 10, 2009 – 3:02 am in Autos, Banking, Biotech, Brokerage Firms, Compensation, Consumer Electronics, Corporate Governance, Economy, Financial Stocks, Management Change, Oil & Gas, Press Digest, Private Equity, Turnarounds, Wireless, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 6/5/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   Rio Tinto (RTP) has killed a deal with Chinalco for one with BHP (BHP).

Reuters:   US regulators insisted JP Morgan (JPM) and Amex (AXP) raise money to exit the TARP.

Reuters:   Countrywide’s Mozilo was charged with fraud.

Reuters:   The suspense is building ahead of one of Apple’s (AAPL) big annual events. Read More »

Posted on: June 5, 2009 – 3:02 am in Banking, China, Commodities, Financial Stocks, Hardware, International Markets, Internet, Management Change, Media, Metals, Oil & Gas, Press Digest, Private Equity, Semiconductor, Software, Technology, Wireless, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Weekend of Cancer Data at AACR Ahead of ASCO (ALTH, AMGN, ARIA, ARRY, AZN, BIIB, CELG, CRIS, IMMU, IMGN, INFI, MEDX, MNTA, ONCY, PFE, PCYC, SUPG, TELK, THLD)

This weekend will be a potentially important oncology and cancer news weekend for drug and biotech stocks.  The American Association for Cancer Research Meeting will actually have a 100th annual meeting, and some traders and investors may be using this as a preview for what lies ahead at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting in a month.  The following companies which are presenting data:

  • Allos Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALTH)
  • Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN)
  • ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARIA)
  • Array BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARRY)
  • AstraZeneca’s (NYSE: AZN) Medimmune unit
  • Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB)
  • Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG)
  • Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS)
  • Immunomedics, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMMU)
  • ImmunoGen, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN)
  • Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: INFI)
  • Medarex, Inc. (Nasdaq: MEDX)
  • Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MNTA)
  • Oncolytics Biotech, Inc. (NASDAQ: ONCY)
  • Pfizer (NYSE: PFE)
  • Pharmacyclics, Inc. (NASDAQ: PCYC)
  • SuperGen Inc. (NASDAQ:SUPG)
  • Telik, Inc. (Nasdaq: TELK)
  • Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: THLD)

You can see a full summary of the data being presented at BioHealthInvestor.com site.  There will be others presenting data this weekend, and these were from the press releases of the meeting ahead of time.

JON C. OGG

Posted on: April 17, 2009 – 2:05 pm in Biotech, Calendar, Drug companies, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

MS Setback for Acorda (ACOR, BIIB)

burning-money-pic42Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ACOR) is taking it right on the chin this morning.  The company announced that it has received a “refuse to file letter” from the FDA regarding its New Drug Application for Fampridine-SR.  Unfortunately, this is supposed to be for a novel therapy being developed to improve walking ability in people with multiple sclerosis.
Read More »

Posted on: March 31, 2009 – 8:54 am in Biotech, FDA, Trading Alert, ,

Carl Icahn Holdings Show No Immunity To Market (IEP, BIIB, AMLN, MOT, YHOO, WMB, APC, TWX, TWC, AMD, TELK, QRCP, LEA, TIN, JCP)

Billionaire and activist investor Carl Icahn has made some  large changes to his portfolio holdings.  He and Icahn Capital, L.P. have not been immune to the market sell-off as you have seen in his Icahn Enterprises, L.P. (NYSE: IEP) share performance.  Here we have commented on some of his larger stakes and larger changes or exits in positions.

Stock Tickers noted as IEP, BIIB, AMLN, MOT, YHOO, WMB, APC, TWX, TWC, AMD, TELK, QRCP, LEA, TIN, and JCP.
Read More »

Posted on: February 14, 2009 – 2:16 pm in Activist Investor, Insider Activity, Value Investing, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Carl Icahn Goes After Biogen Idec (BIIB)

Biogen_logoBiogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) is coming under fire from activist investor Carl Icahn this morning.  A release came out as a "shareholder proposal" from Icahn Partners LP.  He is asking for four positions for new board members, as well as jurisdiction changes.

Read More »

Posted on: February 6, 2009 – 7:38 am in Uncategorized,

Can Biogen Idec Earnings Generate A Buyout? (BIIB, AMGN, GILD, GENZ, CELG, MRK, SNY, GSK)

Biogen_logoBiogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) is set to report earnings on Friday morning.  What many investors probably want to know is if these results — or more importantly its guidance — show that this company will be an acquisition target by a larger rival.

Read More »

Posted on: February 5, 2009 – 5:57 pm in Biotech, Drug companies, Earnings, Mergers and Buy Outs, Trading Alert, , , , , , , ,

Top Pre-Market Analyst Downgrades (AMLN, BIIB, CIEN, XOM, GFA, MXIM, BTU, SLT, SPWRA)

Burning_money_picThese are some of the top pre-market downgrades and cautious calls we have seen from Wall Street analysts this Wednesday morning:

  • Amylin Pharmaceuticals (AMLN) Cut to Sell at Canaccord Adams.
  • Biogen Idec (BIIB) Started as Sell at Brean Murray.
  • Ciena (CIEN) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
  • Exxon Mobil (XOM) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
  • Gafisa (GFA) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
  • Maxim Integrated (MXIM) Cut to Equal Weight at Barclays.
  • Peabody Energy (BTU) Cut to Market Perform at FBR.
  • Sterlite Industries (SLT) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
  • Sunpower (SPWRA) Cut to Accumulate at ThinkEquity.

Jon C. Ogg
January 28, 2009

Posted on: January 28, 2009 – 8:40 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , ,

Top Pre-Market Analyst Upgrades (ARMH, BIIB, CAT, CVH, HCBK, LEN, MOH, TTEK)

Money_stack_picThese are some of the top analyst upgrades and positive research calls we have seen from Wall Street analysts with more than two hours until the market opens this Tuesday morning:

  • ARM Holdings (ARMH) Raised to Buy at UBS.
  • Biogen-Idec (BIIB) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
  • Caterpillar (CAT) Raised to Neutral from Sell at UBS.
  • Coventry Health Care (CVH) Raised to Outperform at Wachovia.
  • Hudson City Bancorp (HCBK) Started at Overweight at Barclays.
  • Lennar (LEN) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
  • Molina Healthcare (MOH) Raised to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
  • Tetra Tech Inc. (TTEK) Started as Buy at Piper Jaffray.

Jon C. Ogg
January 27, 2009

Posted on: January 27, 2009 – 7:21 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , ,

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ALTR, AMZN, BCE, BIIB, LEAP, PDLI, CLUB, VAR, AUY)

Money_stack_pic_2It is still fairly thin in analyst upgrades and downgrades as this week marks the return of investment banking and research departments from what is nearly a two-week hiatus.  Here are the few stand-out calls we have seen early this morning with more than two hours to the open:

  • Altera (NASDAQ: ALTR) Raised to Outperform at Wachovia.
  • Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
  • BCE (NYSE: BCE) Cut to Sector Perform at Scotia.
  • Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
  • Leap Wireless (NASDAQ: LEAP) Raised to Outperform at Wachovia.
  • PDL BioPharma (NASDAQ: PDLI) Raised to Neutral at JPMorgan
  • Town Sports International (NASDAQ: CLUB) Cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
  • Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) Cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.
  • Yamana (NYSE: AUY) Cut to Buy at TD.

Jon C. Ogg
January 5, 2009

Posted on: January 5, 2009 – 7:36 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , ,

Is Pfizer About To Be On Acquisition Path? (PFE, AMGN, WYE, GILD, BMY, LLY, SGP, CELG, GENZ, BIIB)

Money_stack_picThere may be some speculation that drug giant Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) is looking at expansion through acquisitions.  The FT reported that the world’s largest pharmaceutical company is willing to acquire a large rival drug company.  It even cites the CEO as saying the company real goal is to grow revenue, which is different than many other goals out there from other peers in the new market.  It also brings about the questions about who could be on the buyout target list.

Read More »

Posted on: January 5, 2009 – 7:15 am in Biotech, Drug companies, Mergers and Buy Outs, Rumors, , , , , , , , , ,