Looking To Add Biotech Stocks To Your Watchlist? 3 Making Moves This Week
It has clearly been the year of biotech stocks in the stock market. Investors and biotech companies alike will likely agree. Most of the top biotech stocks have seen massive rallies throughout this year. A majority of those include top coronavirus vaccine stocks which understandably have been on investors’ radars. But, with massive strides and developments in the vaccine race, how long can these biotech companies keep this performance up? That is where most investors who are new to the industry find themselves stuck.
Last Friday, vaccine frontrunner Moderna (MRNA Stock Report) received an order for another 100 million vaccine doses from the U.S. government. As news like this emerges, it is often easy to overlook the company’s involvement in other medical fields. Moderna is also conducting trials for its ovarian cancer and rare diseases pipelines. Similarly, Pfizer (PFE Stock Report) received its U.S. FDA authorization for emergency use of its vaccine last Friday. However, most would skim over the fact that the company also saw a 125% year-over-year rise in global revenue from its blockbuster heart and nerve drug tafamidis.
The big picture is, although vaccine revenues are attractive, it is not the only means for biotech companies to profit and grow. Likewise, other diseases and medical challenges still exist even if the media does not cover them daily. Seasoned investors are aware of this fact and are likely looking for biotech stocks who are working behind the scenes. In line with that, here is a list of top biotech stocks making moves in the stock market today.
Read More
- Are These The Best E-Commerce Stocks To Buy This Week? 3 Names To Watch
- Making A List Of The Best Tech Stocks To Buy This Upcoming Week? 3 Names To Watch
Best Biotech Stocks To Watch Right Now: Arvinas Inc
First up, we have Arvinas (ARVN Stock Report). Arvinas is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focusing on therapies that target disease-causing proteins. Primarily, its latest works focus on the company’s proprietary PROTAC protein degraders ARV-471 and ARV-110. Notably, ARVN stock spiked by 95% on Monday after the company released promising data for its drug candidates.
The interim clinical trial data suggests that both PROTAC offerings could be effective at treating tumors. The products in question are targeted towards the treatment of breast cancer and prostate cancer. According to CEO John Houston, these findings provide “clear signals of efficacy” for the company’s programs. Regarding its breast cancer treatment, chief medical officer Ron Peck explained, “Based on data to date, we believe ARV-471 is the most promising ER-targeting therapy in the clinic, showing early signs of efficacy, a favorable tolerability profile, and better ER degradation than that previously reported for fulvestrant, the current standard of care.”
According to breastcancer.org, breast cancer affects about one in eight women in the U.S. as of 2020. This provides a huge pool of clients for the company should things go as planned. Taking advantage of the jump in share price, the company has also announced a public offering of its common stock to raise $250 million. This will add to its balance sheet, which had $248.6 million in cash and short-term investments at the end of September 2020. With a bigger war chest, the company certainly looks to be in a good position to fund its ongoing and future programs. With that, would you be adding ARVN stock to your watchlist?
[Read More] Looking For The Top Consumer Stocks To Watch This Week? 1 Up More Than 400% Since April
Best Biotech Stocks To Watch Right Now: Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc
Following that, we have Alexion (ALXN Stock Report). This pharmaceutical company is best known for the development of Soliris and Ultomiris, drugs used to treat rare blood disorders. It is also involved in research regarding autoimmune diseases. The company’s share prices shot up by 29% on Monday to $156.31 a share after AstraZeneca (AZN Stock Report) agreed to acquire Alexion.
The cash and stock deal placed Alexion at a price tag of $39 billion. This marks 2020’s largest biotech deal to date. Alexion shareholders will own about 15% of the combined enterprise upon completion of the deal in the third quarter of 2021. The play is likely an effort on AstraZeneca’s end to meet its $40 billion revenue goal by 2023. This could play out well for both companies moving forward. On one hand, AstraZeneca would be able to expand its portfolio into the rare diseases field. On the other, Alexion could stand to benefit from having a large parent company backing it.
In fact, Alexion brought in sales of $5 billion, up 21% year-over-year for its fiscal year 2019. This was led by its blockbuster medicine Soliris. Company management appears to be confident with Alexion’s future growth as it has set 2025 revenue goals at double this current figure. AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said, “Alexion has established itself as a leader in complement biology, bringing life-changing benefits to patients with rare diseases, this acquisition allows us to enhance our presence in immunology.” With the deal valuing ALXN stock at over $170 a share, would you consider this to be an arbitrage opportunity?
[Read More] Should Investors Consider Buying These Top Streaming Stocks Ahead of 2021? 3 Dominating The Market Now
Best Biotech Stocks To Watch Right Now: CRISPR Therapeutics AG
The third spot on our list goes to CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP Stock Report). CRISPR is a biopharmaceutical company that specializes in the creation of transformative gene-based medicines for serious diseases. The company is based in Switzerland and has had a great year on the stock market as its shares are up by over 150% year-to-date. However, recent developments could see investors rushing to buy in again this week.
Yesterday, it was announced that CRISPR will receive a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The grant will be put towards researching in vivo gene editing therapies for the treatment of HIV. Executive VP Tony Ho explained that this could allow the company’s treatment to “reach a broader array of patients, including those in low resource settings that lack sufficient infrastructure for stem cell transplantation,” This is indeed a positive development for both the company and its investors.
Simply put, this places the company in an excellent position to leverage its current technologies with a huge backer for support. That’s in addition to the over $1 billion in cash on CRISPR’s balance sheet at the end of September 2020. With such substantial funds at its disposal, we could be looking at the beginning of interesting times for the company. Given all of this, do you think CRSP stock will continue to flourish in 2021?
