David and George,
Let me join the celebration, with the thought that CORR is probably still very cheap in light of the potential of
(1) Integrelin, which is FDA-approved for unstable angina, non-Q-wave MI, AND angioplasty, unlike its competition, (a) Merck's more expensive Aggrastat, approved only for unstable angina and non-Q-wave MI, and (b) Centocor's ReoPro, approved only for angioplasty, slow to clear the body; and
(2) CORR's other GP IIb-IIIa inhibitor, Cromafiban, being developed for once-daily oral administration, now in Phase II trials (see the recent CORR Press release: biz.yahoo.com ) and some other things earlier in the pipeline.
Integrelin's advantages, especially its broader label and its short half-life in the body (so that the ER physician can administer it before the cardiologist arrives, i.e., without worrying about excessive bleeding if the cardiologist decides surgery is needed), have, I gather, led to its increasing acceptance as the anti-clotting agent of choice in the emergency room.
That said, I'm not so sure that CORR is likely to be taken over, at least by anyone other than SGP, because of its entangling arrangements with SGP re Integrelin. I've voiced that doubt earlier:
"Integrelin is partnered with Schering-Plough (co-promotion in U.S. and Canada, and after an initial period, in Europe; royalties to CORR for sales elsewhere, rate not disclosed), which presumably puts something of a damper on anyone else's ambition to munch up CORR. The 10-K and other things I've seen are a little unclear, but it appears that the Schering collaboration is limited to Integrelin. The 10-K does mention "integrating" the two sales forces, etc., suggesting that SGP and CORR contemplate the possibility of expanding their arrangement to later products. What I've looked at doesn't say much about the financial terms of the arrangement - I assume it's a 50-50 split of the net where they co-promote), but I'd rather they'd said that explicitly somewhere."
techstocks.com
The above relates to the 1997 10-K, and I haven't compared the 1998 10-K (and won't have time in the next few days). Any views on how much of a damper on a takeover the SGP ties might be?
FWIW, although I'm not averse to taking profits after quick runups, I'm hanging onto CORR, even when it's up 45% or so from the larger part of my position (at 8 5/8), since I think it has a lot of room to run from here; or if it doesn't, it will probably be because it surprises me and gets munched before going very high up the slope I envision.
-- Bob. |
