Posts for Ticker ‘Dendreon’

Dendreon Shares Losing House Committee Hope (DNDN)

CNBC’s Mike Huckman just announced what is going to be a disappointment for Dendreon (NASDAQ: DNDN) holders, and that may be an understatement.  The House Committee will not be forcing any action or pressing the FDA over Dendreon’s PROVENGE until FDA makes a final decision, and that could be one to three years away.  There had been hopes that the committee would uncover conflicts of interest that have been alleged by many hopeful patients and investors alike.  That doesn’t look to be in the realm of possibilities now.

As a reminder, there is still hope that the EU might actually save it when the FDA wouldn’t.

Dendreon shares are now down over 7% to $5.37, and its 52-week trading range is $3.57 to $25.25.

Jon C. Ogg
February 13, 2008

Posted on: February 13, 2008 – 3:34 pm in Biotech, FDA, , , , ,

Dendreon A Double Already? (DNDN)

If you read 24/WallSt.com’s "Ten Stocks That Could Double in 2008" from us, you saw that Dendreon (NASDAQ:DNDN) is on that list.  We weren’t expecting a 22% pop in shares this fast.  We’d like to take credit for that pop, although the real credit belongs to CNBC’s Mike Huckman who reported that Congressmen are probing the recent failed approval process in the FDA over the review and over conflicts of interest.

We have been looking for something like this to come up, although the day-after time period was not what we were thinking.

Dendreon regularly is screened for our weekly "10 Stocks Under $10" newsletter.  Shares are now up 25% at $7.03 on almost 20 million shares and options trading activity has gone through the roof today.

Jon C. Ogg
December 13, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: December 13, 2007 – 3:56 pm in Biotech, , ,

Dendreon Sets Stage for 2008 for PROVENGE

Dendreon (NASDAQ:DNDN) has issued a press release noting that it has completed its target enrollment of 500 patients in phase III IMPACT study of PROVENGE for advanced prostate cancer.  It also noted:

  • FDA Has Agreed That Positive Survival Data from IMPACT Study Would Support Licensure of PROVENGE;
  • Interim Survival Results Expected in Second Half of 2008.

The IMPACT study is a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled Phase 3 trial designed to measure overall survival in men with metastatic hormone-refractory prostate cancer receiving PROVENGE versus placebo.  Even though the company received a set back this year that may or may not allow PROVENGE onto the market, Dendreon maintains that the FDA will accept either a positive interim or positive final analysis of overall survival from the IMPACT study to amend the Biologics License Application and support the efficacy claim for PROVENGE.

With this being one of the only hopes for late-stage prostate cancer patients, this ‘completed enrollment’ would have been easy to expect.  There have not yet been any trades in the pre-market, but first indications are $7.62X$8.05 versus the $7.58 close.  If there was much new data or anything that pointed to positive data there would be significant pre-market trading.

Jon C. Ogg
October 23, 2007

Posted on: October 23, 2007 – 6:55 am in Biotech, , , ,

Dendreon Has $130 Million More At Its Disposal, If It Wants (DNDN)

Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ:DNDN) has secured a committed equity financing facility under which it may sell up to $130 million of its registered common stock to Azimuth Opportunity, Ltd. over an 18-month period.

Dendreon is not obligated to utilize any of the $130 million facility and remains free to enter into and consummate other equity and debt financing transactions.  Dendreon will determine, at its sole discretion, the timing, dollar amount and floor price per share of each draw under this facility, subject to certain conditions. The number and price of shares sold in each draw are determined by a contractual formula, whereby Dendreon will issue shares to Azimuth when and if Dendreon elects to use the facility at a small discount to the volume weighted average price of Dendreon’s common stock over a preceding period of trading days.

This is a good news situation for the company, IF it determines it wants to bolster its cash. Sure, it’s dilutive.  But with PROVENGE on hold and the FDA being more unpredictable than a two-card draw game, they bought themselves much more cash if they want.  Some may try to say that they see the company showing a position of need, but this also gives the company even more long term cash to keep up its fight.  Dendreon’s options haven’t shown any major indications of late, although the bias has still leaned to call option buying and higher open interest compared to put options.

Jon C. Ogg
October 12, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he produces the Special Situation Investing Newsletter and he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: October 12, 2007 – 6:17 am in Biotech, ,

Institutional Buyer Sheds Light on Dendreon (DNDN)

An interesting event happened yesterday in the form of an SEC Filing on Dendreon (NASDAQ:DNDN) that ran the stock.  In a fed-filing from yesterday it was disclosed that BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA held 6,961,101 shares of Dendreon stock.  That equates to an 8.18% stake.  If you review the June 30, 2007 holders, this will put BNP Paribas at roughly double the holdings held by Barclays (largest holder previously).

This filing actually lists the transaction date as JULY 25, 2007, so there is a full six weeks of look back here. If that form is accurate on the ownership date, shares are higher now than on the trade date.  Also last night the company filed its form 424B3, which allows holders of the 4.75% convertible senior subordinated notes that were placed on June 11 and July 11, 2007 to resell notes and common shares.  This is actually a common event and does not necessarily mean any such sale is pending.

Other than its breast cancer Phase I data from last month, this one has been fairly quiet on the news front of late.

Yesterday there were some 13.68 million shares that traded hands and shares rose 5.6% from Friday’s close.  Shares are up another 1.5% today at $8.25 and it has already traded over 6 million shares in less than two hours of being open.  The stock did briefly put in a near-term high of $8.48 today, but have come back in.  The $8.30 to $8.35 had been the prior intra-day levels that acted as intraday highs in both July and August.

Jon C. Ogg
September 11, 2007

Jon Ogg produces the 24/7 Wall St. SPECIAL SITUATION INVESTING NEWSLETTER; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: September 11, 2007 – 10:24 am in Biotech, , ,

Dendreon Shows Lower Expenses (DNDN)

Dendreon (NASDAQ:DNDN) has posted its results.  The actual EPS and revenues don’t matter because of the stage of the company.  But the company did lower its total expenses to $23.4 million.  That compares to $26.3 million from Q2 2006 and roughly $28 million last quarter.  Those expenses included options costs of $1.3 million and $2.9 million, respectively.

So the company slowed its cash burn rate, and that is what we wanted to see.  Unfortunately the company made no new developments in the "highlights" or "disclosures."  Unless the company announces some unexpected FDA developments or unless it announces a surprise partner, this one sounds like there could be a continued news vacuum.

Jon C. Ogg
August 7, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: August 7, 2007 – 3:33 pm in Biotech, Earnings, ,

Looking Beyond Dendreon’s Upcoming Earnings Release (DNDN)

Dendreon Corp. (NASDAQ:DNDN) will release earnings next Tuesday, August 7, after the close.  The volatility in shares has dried up considerably as shares have only traded above $8.00 or below $7.00 for part of three trading days in July.  The company’s only expected revenues here will be from interest and the loss expected looks like it is -$0.30 on an EPS basis.  That number may change before the report.

There can always be some activist group activity here, or at least that is what incoming emails received have stated.  Some sent in to us listed "the first of many" and "Many more to come."  We’ll see if that creates some movement or not. Options are still fairly active in the open interest with over 154,000 contracts in the August $7.50 Calls and over 129,000 contracts in the $7.50 puts.  That huge open interest drops off a cliff in the near-months after this as no new FDA data is really expected.  An at-the-money straddle right now only looks like it costs $0.70, lower than in any recent month.   

All of these following issues are already known and already in the news, but on top of earnings the company is going to address the following:

  • The Company received confirmation that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will accept either a positive interim or final analysis of survival from its ongoing IMPACT study to amend the Biologics License Application for Provenge® (sipuleucel-T), its investigational active cellular immunotherapy for metastatic, androgen-independent prostate cancer.
  • The Company continues to have strong patient enrollment in its Phase 3 IMPACT study, which is on track for completion of enrollment this year.
  • The Company completed a financing that resulted in gross proceeds of approximately $85 million from a convertible senior subordinated notes offering.
  • Presented data from an analysis of Phase 3 Studies (D9901 and D9902A) that showed a prolonged survival benefit for patients who were initially treated with PROVENGE who then went on to receive docetaxel chemotherapy after disease progression.

Obviously if there is any new development out of the FDA or if the company decides it wants a partner that will be key to watch over anything else.  We previously noted how shares may face a news vacuum through much of summer and that looks like it has been the case as trading volume has dropped and volatility in the stock has disappeared.  What we will be looking at the closest is the company’s current and projected cash burn rates since it secured the recent financing package and announced its reduced cost structure. 

This one has been eerily quiet of late as far as any real news out of the company.  We’ll follow up if there are any substantial changes ahead of the release. 

Jon C. Ogg
August 3, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: August 3, 2007 – 11:44 am in Biotech, Earnings, FDA, , , ,

Jim Cramer on Dendreon (DNDN)

Cramer in a question from a student tonight on CNBC’s MAD MONEY was actually asked about the recently wild Dendreon (DNDN-NASDAQ).  What he said was that he thinks it can still go up and that it will probably still go higher.  He was very explicit though about the risks after such a huge week last week and even this week that it is very speculative and very risky.  He noted how CNBC’s Mike Huckman called it right about the risk-reward being so huge with upside.  DNDN closed up almost 3% at $15.08 on over 13 million shares, and it ticked up a bit less than 1% to $15.19 after he cautiously was positive on it.

Jon C. Ogg
April 4, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: April 4, 2007 – 5:45 pm in Biotech, Cramer, , ,

Medarex Stock Options Activity Resembles Dendreon’s Trading

Stock Tickers: MEDX, DNDN

When traders made bets and saw a move of more than 200% at one point onFriday in Dendreon (DNDN), this is the sort of news that can getbiotechs with upcoming events (and even some of the old dead biotechzombies) going.  Don’t be shocked when you look back to Friday or evenover the next two weeks as traders are parsing through trades to findwhat could be the next mover like Dendreon (DNDN).  Before readingfurther, understand that trying to look for a 200% gainer is not thenorm and trying to predict a gain or loss of anything remotely close tothis in a biotech company is one that even industry and corporateinsiders have charred their fingers on many times. 

But what can be done is looking out on the horizon as far as optionstrading and open interest is telling you, and this will at least give ashot to see where some of the smart money and aggressive traders areplacing some bets and where they see a big potential move down theroad.  Medarex Inc. (MEDX-NASDAQ)is one of those names as one of the upcoming biotech review stocks towatch.  This is already a battleground stock as traders have placedbets in favor and against this name, just like they did in Dendreon,and the short interest has risen.  The company’s financials have beenleft off for a space-saving since this is already a long note, but theyhave ample operating capital and partnerships that should keep themgoing for years.  The short interest grew from 13 million shares inFebruary to 16.7 million in March, and its market cap is almost $1.6Billion.  At a $12.72 close MONDAY, shares are in the middle of a $8.51to $16.23 52-week trading range; shares have been significantly higherand lower over the last 10 years and more.

Read More »

Posted on: April 4, 2007 – 8:04 am in Biotech, , , , , ,

Unusual Options Activity (MAR 31, 2007)

Stock Tickers: DNDN, SIRI, XMSR, BRCD, MSFT, F, TRLG, BJS, HAL

Dendreon (DNDN) saw much options activity, but that would be expected because of the FDA panel review.  There were some fortunes made and lost on this one.  Of the top 15 options contracts in total trading volume Friday, 10 of the various strike and expiration months of DNDN were there.  This one was so aqctive after the reopen and subsequent 92.5 million shares that it masked some of the other usual options screens.

Brocade (BRCD) saw 22,150 contracts trade in the APR07 $9 Puts.  With the stock still close to its year highs someone is either hedging for 2.2 million shares or they are making a leveraged bet that the good news won’t last.

Traders have some pretty large long-term bets that Vista will be a winner for Microsoft (MSFT) as the open interest in the JAN08 $30 CALLS 337,000 contracts. That represents 33.7 million shares on a fully leveraged basis.  The open interest in the JAN08 PUTS is pretty high as well: $27.50 142,580 contracts; $25.00 156,273 contracts; $22.50 101,299 contracts; and $20.00 222,258 contracts.

Ford (F) has quite a few hedgers and speculators in the options as well.  Out of the 20 largest open interest contracts, 6 of the 20 belong to Ford.

True Religion (TRLG) had much higher than normal options activity as the stock traded 4-times normal volume on buyout rumors.  The company has been a potential “buyout name” for some time, but oddly enough the street wasn’t impresses with its last earnings.  There is also a split in the design area as the CEO and VP of women’s design are calling it splitsville.  Acquiring this company better include the full design team that has made it such a success story since this was as low as under $1.00 in 2004 and now sits at $16.24.

This one may not be the Most Unusual, but BJ Services (BJS) saw 5,648 contracts trade in the JULY07 $30 CALLS.  The open interest in the near-month APRIL07 contracts is more than 50,000 contracts if you combine the $27.50, $30.00, and $32.50 CALLS.  There is still speculation of more mergers being considered in the drillers and service companies in oil and gas, so who knows on this one.

Halliburton (HAL) still has some strange open interest in ARIL07 $40 PUTS/CALLS and it is possible these were either left from the KBR or a trade based on the self-tender.  It is listed as more than 430,000 contracts in each.  With the stock at $31.74 this may have been a large capture trade based on the old KBR spin-out or on the self tender.

Oddly enough, Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI) is seeing less and less options trading and the LEAPS are much more vacant in open interest than one would guess for such a widely followed and speculated upon stock.  Its merger partner XM Satellite Radio (XMSR) is seeing the same thing.  That is a bit baffling for such a widely followed merger and for such a controversial situation.  The short interest was mostly steady in SIRI in March (123.6M vs. 125.1M in FEB) and grew in XMSR saw its short interest grow (31.2M vs. 28.9M in FEB).  Go figure.

Jon C. Ogg
March 31, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: March 31, 2007 – 12:42 pm in Options, , , , , , , , ,