Category Archives: Biotechnology

By Serge Berger, Head Trader & Strategist, The Steady Trader|Mar 7, 2017, 8:02 am EST Popular Posts: Recent Posts: Biotechnology stocks as represented by theiShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (ETF)(NASDAQ:IBB) have rallied 13% year-to-date. Thats notable considering that over the past 12 months, the IBB ETF has only rallied by about 14%. Many traders in recent days have pointed to the continued strength in biotech stocks as a sign that the broader market is not yet ready to roll over. But it is notable that the IBB, as a result of the recent rally, has now reached an important technical level on the charts that may offer better technical resistance. A simple yet effective trick that I repeatedly use to gauge the internal strength of the broader stock market is by checking the pulse of the so calledrisk-on groups. While these groups change over the years, they often include technology and financial stocks. In recent years, biotech, tech as a whole and small-cap stocks, among others, have led the risk-on pack. Over the past few weeks, biotech stocks and the IBB ETF have showed both absolute and relative strength versus the broader stock market. Through this lens, one could argue that … Continue reading →

Benzinga RBC Capital Markets Cuts Puma Biotechnology Inc (PBYI) Price Target to $17.00 The Cerbat Gem Puma Biotechnology Inc logo Puma Biotechnology Inc (NYSE:PBYI) had its target price reduced by RBC Capital Markets from $48.00 to $17.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning. They currently have a sector perform rating on the ... The Puma Biotechnology Inc (PBYI) Price Target Cut to $17.00 by Analysts at RBC Capital MarketsDailyQuint Puma Biotechnology Shares Plunge On Plans To Modify Neratinib European MAA, Competitor Roche's Perjeta WinBenzinga Puma Biotechnology Inc Realized Volatility Hits A Notable HighCML News Smarter Analyst -Yahoo Finance -Sports Perspectives all 94 news articles » Go here to read the rest: RBC Capital Markets Cuts Puma Biotechnology Inc (PBYI) Price Target to $17.00 - The Cerbat Gem … Continue reading →

SIOUX FALLS Sen. John Thune (RS.D.) has been named Legislator of the Year from the international Biotechnology Innovation Organizations Industrial & Environmental Health Section. The award recognizes Senator Thunes support of the biotechnology industry and steadfast commitment to growing South Dakotas and the nations bio-based economy. Thunes award was presented by Doug Berven, a member of BIOs governing board and vice president of corporate affairs at Sioux Falls-based POET, and Brent Erickson, executive vice president of BIOs Industrial & Environmental Section. Sen. John Thune has been a strong and constant champion of policies that support industrial biotechnology companies in creating jobs, revitalizing manufacturing, improving U.S. energy security and building a bio-based economy, Erickson said. Senator Thune was first elected to the Senate in 2004, when the first Renewable Fuel Standard was under development. He helped expand the program in 2007 and has been a determined advocate in encouraging the Environmental Protection Agency to get the program on track for future growth. Thune also was recognized helping renew tax credits for second-generation biofuels and for co-sponsoring legislation to ensure mandatory funding for energy programs in the Agriculture Act of 2014. Through his efforts, Congress has incorporated innovative programs in the Farm … Continue reading →

The biotech industry had a rough 12 months. First the beatings came from presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton as she vowed to crush their pricing models. Now President Donald Trump is following up with similar promises. For a long while, tickers like the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (ETF) (NASDAQ:IBB) were toxic to investors. The thesis was that healthcare and biotech companies were untouchable with the political cloud looming above them. Recently, and in spite of the fact that that nothing has changed from the political standpoint, the worrisome headlines became stale and lost their zing. Thats what usually happens. Traders initially over-react to the headline and then after a while, return to trading the fundamentals. The companies in the IBB have legitimate, viable businesses. This is a classic case of a bad apples who spoil the bunch. Technically the IBB stock price is in a breakout that I rode higher on Feb. 11 with debit call spreads. The important price action came when the IBB reclaimed the $280 per share pivotal zone. From here at the $300 per share level, it can once again provide a base from which to mount another leg higher. This area is an important long term … Continue reading →

The UP Genetic Researchers and Agricultural Innovators Society strives to uphold awareness on the ways, means, and science behind agricultural biotechnology to help students and farmers alike Published 6:59 AM, March 06, 2017 Updated 9:19 AM, March 06, 2017 MANILA, Philippines How can agricultural biotechnology help and serve farmers and students alike? These students from the University of the Philippines Genetic Researchers and Agricultural Innovators Society or UP GRAINS found a way. We think its important to promote biotechnology because its one of the most advanced fields of science and we think it is also neglected in the Philippines," founding Vice-President of UP Grains Kohlin Lallaban said. UP GRAINS, which was formed in 2014 in UP Los Baos, is an academic organization that promotes agricultural biotechnology. The group helps farmers make a living. Its programs allow students from Batangas, Laguna, and Camarines Norte provinces learn about techniques in biotechnology and how they can apply these to their research. They bring experts and professors from different universities in Laguna and Batangas to communities, teaching farmers how to grow their crops better. The student organization has touched lives through its programs which include academic tutorials (Chem 40: Basic Organic Chemistry Tutorials), educational … Continue reading →

What happened Puma Biotechnology (NASDAQ:PBYI) ended the day down 13.8% after Roche (NASDAQOTH:RHHBY) reported that its rival breast cancer drug, Perjeta, had passed its phase 3 trial, dubbed "Aphinity." Image source: Getty Images. In Roche's trial, patients either took Perjeta and Herceptin with chemotherapy or just Herceptin with chemotherapy, and then took Perjeta and Herceptin, or just Herceptin, for an additional year. Roche didn't release the full data from the clinical trial, but it did say the triple combination reduced the risk of recurrence of invasive disease or death compared to Herceptin and chemotherapy alone. The potential to establish a new standard of care where patients take Herceptin and Perjeta for a year could be problematic for Puma Biotechnology because its drug candidate, neratinib, was tested after just Herceptin use, the current standard of care. Without any data, doctors will likely wonder whether neratinib helps patients that have received Herceptin and Perjeta. And the relapse rate for patients on the current standard of care is already quite low; if adding Perjeta decreases it further, doctors and their patients may decide taking another drug after that isn't worth it, especially given neratinib's side-effect profile. Investors will have to wait for the … Continue reading →

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) shares skyrocketed over 65% this morning, after the drug maker announced top-line results from its AURA-LV Phase IIb study with voclosporin (VCS) in patients with lupus nephritis (LN) that showed at 48 weeks, the study met its complete remission (CR) and partial remission (PR) endpoints. FBR analyst Vernon T. Bernardino commented, We are impressed with the results, as CRs and PRs at 48 weeks exceeded CRs and PRs at 24 weeks, with one exception. As a reminder, each study arm included standard of care mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) as background therapy and a forced steroid taper. There were no unexpected safety signals or deaths observed in VCS-treated patients. Thus, in addition to strong efficacy, VCS appears to allow safe steroid sparing. We think the results are robust and bode well for a successful Phase III trial, which could make VCS the first approved therapy for LN. As of this writing,the 4 analysts polled by TipRanks (in the past 6months) rate Aurinia stock a Buy. With a return potential of 39%, the stocks consensus target price stands at $8.50. Puma Biotechnology Inc (NASDAQ:PBYI) shares lost one-quarter of their value today, after competitor Roche announced positive top-line results from … Continue reading →

March 3, 2017 6:13am NASDAQ:IBB From Taki Tsaklanos: Biotechnology stocks are breaking out. They have been consolidating for nearly 20 months. Investors lost interestand that is exactly what smart investors, in general, want to see in order to buy a market. That is also how bull markets start: when nobody talks about it and only a minority of investors is buying it. Now here it becomes interesting. InvestingHavens research team has closely followed biotechnology, and has written extensively about it last year. The red line throughout all articles was that smart investors are not in a hurry to buy biotech, but prefer to see which direction biotech would go. This is what was published on InvestingHaven until fall of last year: Biotechnology Close To A Major Breakdown Level Health Sector Testing All-Time Highs In 2016, Biotech A Buy After Breaking Out Alert: Biotechnology and Health Sector Testing Long Time Support Biotechnology Stocks Have News For Investors: It is Now or Never In other words, on several occasions last year biotechnology stocks were ready to break down, but eventually they did not. The market refused to go lower, and that was a very important observation, which was shared with our readers: … Continue reading →

What happened Puma Biotechnology (NASDAQ: PBYI) ended the day down 13.8% after Roche (NASDAQOTH: RHHBY) reported that its rival breast cancer drug, Perjeta, had passed its phase 3 trial, dubbed "Aphinity." Image source: Getty Images. In Roche's trial, patients either took Perjeta and Herceptin with chemotherapy or just Herceptin with chemotherapy, and then took Perjeta and Herceptin, or just Herceptin, for an additional year. Roche didn't release the full data from the clinical trial, but it did say the triple combination reduced the risk of recurrence of invasive disease or death compared to Herceptin and chemotherapy alone. The potential to establish a new standard of care where patients take Herceptin and Perjeta for a year could be problematic for Puma Biotechnology because its drug candidate, neratinib, was tested after just Herceptin use, the current standard of care. Without any data, doctors will likely wonder whether neratinib helps patients that have received Herceptin and Perjeta. And the relapse rate for patients on the current standard of care is already quite low; if adding Perjeta decreases it further, doctors and their patients may decide taking another drug after that isn't worth it, especially given neratinib's side-effect profile. Investors will have to wait … Continue reading →

Shares of Puma Biotechnology Inc (NASDAQ: PBYI) plunged more than 25 percent following plans to modify the summary of product characteristics (SmPC) in its European Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for its breast cancer drug neratinib. The company now plans to restrict the intended population to patients initiating neratinib treatment within one year after completion of adjuvant trastuzumab therapy. Earlier, the proposed indication was for the "extended adjuvant treatment of adult patients with early-stage HER2-overexpressed/amplified breast cancer who have received prior adjuvant trastuzumab based therapy." Puma submitted its neratinib MAA last summer. During the regulators meeting, the timeline for Neratinib was discussed. Neratinib will likely be sequenced immediately after adjuvant trastuzumab. Furthermore, more benefits were observed in the subgroup of patients who received neratinib within one year from prior trastuzumab completion. Related Link: Here's What To Expect Following Trump's Drug Pricing 'Robbery' Comments In addition, data from the pivotal adjuvant trastuzumab trials suggest that patients are at higher risk of recurrence closer to completion of adjuvant trastuzumab, and the risk of recurrence may decrease over time. Puma also noted that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) is continuing to review Puma's MAA and has not yet made a … Continue reading →