Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Biotech / Medical : Imclone systems (IMCL) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Eddie D. Gilbert who wrote (123)	10/10/1998 11:36:00 PM
From: flickerful	Respond to of 2515

some excerpts from a march article in BUYSIDE... buyside.com Hang On To Biotech Richard Joy of Standard & Poor's Corp. thinks that biotech, though maturing, is still event-driven and will need positive events in 1998 to build momentum. But he's bullish: The industry is deep in research and development and, therefore, potential. Taken together, biotech companies have about 60% of the market cap of pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co., but they have hundreds more products in clinical trials than Merck. So, pharmaceutical companies will continue to partner with biotech firms, providing the capital to get drugs through the seven- to 10-year development cycle - one that should become shorter now that FDA reform was signed into law in late 1997. "There's a tremendous amount of potential that has value to it, but the market has not effectively priced it for most companies," Joy says. That's always been biotech's problem for Wall Street: placing a value on something that isn't yet tangible, or that hasn't started producing revenue. "To measure value," AmeriCal's Engelberg says, "we need to see products that are going to sell. We also have to see, at the minimum, very strong phase II or III clinical trial results for a lead product that is effective in a disease with a real market." ......A new class of anti-cancer agents is being developed by ImClone Systems Corp., which is recommended by both Franklin Berger of Salomon Smith Barney and Wolé Fayemi of Cruttenden Roth. The company has two advanced drug development programs. Its lead product is C225, a chimeric (half human, half mouse) monoclonal antibody cancer therapeutic, and it is expected to enter two advanced clinical trials in the next six months. The drug will be used as a monotherapy in renal cell carcinoma and as an adjunct to chemotherapy in head and neck cancer. Its other products include BEC-2, which is an advanced tumor vaccine program that is partnered with Merck KGaA. Soon, BEC-2 is expected to enter a phase III clinical trial, targeting small-cell lung cancer. Berger believes that ImClone will gain investor attention, owing to an anticipated strong news flow from multiple clinical trials and from potential new partnerships. But he says the key driver to his favorable rating is the C225 program. "C225 has the potential to become a breakthrough drug in the oncology field because of its unique mechanism of action and favorable side-effect profile," he says. Berger estimates a loss per share of 55 cents for 1998, rising to a loss per share of 37 cents for 1999. His target price is $12. Fayemi adds that ImClone can generate significant revenue (potentially $65 million), while retaining its ownership rights to C225. Because the company can proceed in clinical trials with C225, it is positioned to receive maximum returns when a partner is found. He anticipates losses per share of 65 cents in 1998 and 71 cents in 1999. Fayemi targets the shares to reach $16 in 1998..... Just as studying is crucial to mastering a complicated course, it's also crucial in dealing with biotechnology. The industry is still young in terms of companies that are revenue producers - much of the value is in the pipelines of companies that have one or two approved products. Analysts say the fate of biotech companies no longer hinges on what a few high-profile players or drug candidates do. But that hype still overshadows the industry. To get good grades in biotech investment requires doing the complicated homework.

To: Eddie D. Gilbert who wrote (123)	10/11/1998 12:40:00 AM
From: flickerful	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2515

<<<<Imclone (IMCL), a New York developer of cancer treatments, could see its shares enjoy takeover speculation. As Alan Greenspan Tuesday discusses a wave of U.S. mergers and acquisitions that will easily surpass $1 trillion this year, investors are hoping that Imclone's cancer research puts it in the hands of a large drug company like Schering Plough Corp. (SGP) >>>> 16 june 98 cbs.marketwatch.com

To: Eddie D. Gilbert who wrote (123)	10/19/1998 6:25:00 AM
From: flickerful	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2515

Biotech stocks look like new leaders By Thom Calandra, CBS MarketWatch Last Update: 10:33 AM ET Oct 16, 1998 SEATTLE (CBS.MW) -- Reality check? After the Federal Reserve bailed out the world by stripping basis-points from lending rates, investors are staring at a U.S. stock market that easily could turn south again. Columnist and technician Leo Fasciocco tells me "the advantage goes to the bulls." But hey, it's not over 'til it's over. Right now, Fasciocco likes several biotechnology stocks. "The Fed (interest rate) cuts get the fundamental credit," says Fasciocco, whose work appears in newspaper Investor's Business Daily. "The question now is: how far will the rally carry? No one knows for sure." Fasciocco's daily Ticker Tape Digest correctly saw and recommended several utility stocks ($UTIL) "breaking out" of their trading patterns in August. He says most smart investors make money by identifying market leaders, not sizing up the broader stock market. "One has to watch the day-by-day action and look for any 'distribution,'" he says. Translation: if trading volume becomes very heavy a few days from now and the Dow falls or shows no gain, that's distribution -- a possible negative sign. "The trick to spotting the top in the major averages is to follow the day-to-day action," he says. More important are the directions of individual stocks. "The number of stocks breaking out of bases and making new highs are important to watch. These are the leaders." Fasciocco, who will be at a stock-picking seminar in Seattle next week, says he is spotting "great tape action and technicals in the big profitable biotechs like Biogen (BGEN) and Genzyme (GENZ)." He also sees positive trends in the stocks of biotech service firms Parexel (PRXL) and Pharmaceutical Product Development (PPDI). "The market is bullish now. Most people who were hurt by the prior decline are sometimes psychologically rattled and become hesitant about the market," he told me. "However, the momentum is to the upside."