Actually, I should be following "classical" pharma comp. They are more closely to my profession.
I own REGN share and CTII calls. Both company I value through AMGN-GNE relation.
REGN has good R&D. Their neuron grow factors will at the end reach market, but there are limitation: competition, relatively small market, cost of the drugs/method of delivery. REGN are slowly switching to other field: cardiovascular, immunology, cancer. This will need money and time, scientists and management they have. My feeling is that AMGN is pushing its own programs for CNS disease, and REGN partnership is secondary. Is this a tactic for buyout, I do not know.
CTII is emerging as comp. with advance and unique technology for hard to threat, by conventional small molecules, CNS disorders. Their encapsulated-cell technology (today article in PRNewswire and NATURE) demonstrate that cell can be genetic modified for production of the natural NGF and encapsulated in to special membrane where cells are protected. CTII have two deals: with Astra for chronic pain and GNE for (mainly) Parkinson and license for others GF. On its own they are proceeding with CNTF for ALS and Hungtington's. Their technology is more elegant than Medtronic's intrathecal pump, but with limit to natural proteins/hormones or genetic modified cells. Their collaboration with Cognetix on snail conotoxins is a plus. Extreme large insiders and institutions position on CTII, only few share floating. If they are successful with trials, many will be very surprise with stock performance.
mz |
