Sales of ZADAXIN increased 216% to $2,223,000 in 97 from $703,000 in 96.
*** Maybe its the growth in sales year to year.
*** Maybe its because the new Chairman of the Board is Jere Goyan, a former Commissioner of the FDA. Always good to have the former
FDA Commissioner going to bat for you.
*** Maybe it is the potential growth as they achieve approvals in other countries:
"Feb. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- SciClone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCLN- news) today announced that it has received government approval to market its lead drug,ZADAXIN(R) thymosin alpha 1, in Argentina and Peru. ZADAXIN is already marketed in three Asian countries -- the People's Republic of China, the Philippines and Singapore. SciClone has filed for approval to market ZADAXIN in 16 additional countries in Asia, the Middle East and Latin America."
*** It could be that that ZADAXIN may be useful in treating primary liver cancer, the most common cancer in the world. The announcement followed a preliminary study in which 12 patients were treated with over six months and showed significant results during treatment.
*** Maybe it is the fact that they're working with Schering-Plough in a 300-patient pivotal Phase III hepatitis B trial and a Phase II hepatitis C trial for ZADAXIN in the world's largest market for viral hepatitis therapies, Japan.
*** Maybe it's because they presented a pivotal Phase III hepatitis C program for ZADAXIN to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the regulatory authorities in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Denmark.
*** Maybe it is because the Company designated Adrian Di Bisceglie, M.D. Medical Director of the American Liver Foundation, as the principal investigator for its planned pivotal Phase III hepatitis C trial for ZADAXIN.
*** It could be their most recent approval to market ZADAXIN in Kuwait,"March 24 /PRNewswire/ -- SciClone Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: SCLN -news) today announced that it has received approval from the Ministry of Health in Kuwait to market its lead product, ZADAXIN(R)thymosin alpha 1, for the treatment of hepatitis B."
*** It could be their reported breakthrough nonclinical data demonstrating that CPX, the Company's new protein-repair therapy, is the only drug in clinical development that has the potential to correct the two underlying molecular defects in more than 70% of cystic fibrosis patients -- abnormal protein trafficking and impaired chloride transport.
*** It could be the great job the IR is doing with the timing of the releases ( 19 releases in 1998)
***** Or it could be a combination of all of the above.
What I do know is institutional investors usually don't invest $4 million in a company for 661,157 preferred shares that pay NO dividends and are convertible into common stock on a scheduled basis over the next five years at prices based on the market price of the common stock during a pricing period preceding conversion.
If they were to convert tomorrow they would loose around $1.2 million. Obviously they see some potential here.
Also, the investors received 100,000 five-year warrants to purchase common stock at $5.67 per share which is above $1.67 above the $4.00 open today. If the investors convert their preferred shares at a price exceeding $6.00 per share, they will receive the right to purchase additional shares of common stock at a price NO LESS than $6.00 per share which is $2.00 above the $4.00 open.
I apologize for the lengthy reply but the background was needed to point out that, when taking in to consideration all of the above points, the potential is HUGE, and maybe the institutional investors that put up the $4 million today and additional $3.6 million if exercised think so too.
I'll leave you with this final thought that may indicated they know something is coming up real soon.
***** They could have just bought 45,000 shares a day over the next 15 trading days to get 675,000 shares and probably pay a lot less then the $4 million they paid today. Even if they paid an average price of $5 a share it would have only cost them $3.375 million. By buying over the next 15 days they could have saved themselves $625,000. So why did they put up the $4 million for this deal when they could have possibly accumulated the same number of shares over the next 15 days at a lower cost. It sure wasn't for the warrants because the have to pay $5.67 a share to convert.***** |
