Best Biotech Stocks To Buy [Or Sell] Right Now
Investors looking for high returns could turn to biotech stocks. These stocks are more volatile than your usual pick. However, could this be the right time to buy biotech stocks after rising Treasury yields continue to spark a tech-led selloff? The selloff was so big that the Nasdaq Composite had just experienced its biggest one-day loss since October. One of the best places to go for outsized returns would be the biotech sector and for good reason. These companies try to find medical solutions that are needed. Diseases that were once incurable like cystic fibrosis (CF) can now be treated by Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ (NASDAQ: VRTX) TRIKAFTA drug.
Another fine example of a biotech stock is Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA). Being one of the first vaccines in the world to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has its perks. Yesterday, the company says it expects to rake in $18.4 billion of sales from its coronavirus vaccine this year, marking a huge turnaround in the fortunes of the U.S. biotech firm. This vast sale will push Moderna into profit for the first time and move the company on to a bigger league. MRNA stock has risen by over 400% in the last year. It has since taken a breather in February after news of Pfizer’s (NYSE: PFE) vaccine being able to be stored for up to two weeks at lower temperatures than previously anticipated.
With so many things happening in the biotech space, it sure can be a daunting task to pick the next Moderna. That said, here is a list of top biotech stocks for you to consider buying.
Best Biotech Stocks To Buy [Or Sell] Now
- Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK)
- Dynavax Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: DVAX)
- Lixte Biotech Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: LIXT)
- Akouos Inc. (NASDAQ: AKUS)
Merck & Co.
Merck is a multinational pharmaceutical company and is one of the largest in the world. The company offers health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, and biological therapies. It also offers animal health products. Merck operates through its four segments: Pharmaceuticals, Animal Health, Healthcare Services, and Alliances. Yesterday, the company announced that it will acquire Pandion Therapeutics (NASDAQ: PAND), a clinical-stage biotech company developing novel therapeutics designed to address autoimmune diseases for approximately $1.85 billion. MRK stock currently trades at $72.62 at the end of the trading day on Friday.
Earlier this month, the company had reported its fourth-quarter and full-year 2020 financial results. Merck posted fourth-quarter sales of $12.5 billion, which is a 5% increase from a year earlier. Full-year sales worldwide were an impressive $48 billion. Its KEYTRUDA sales grew by 30% this year at $14.4 billion.
The company also posted full-year earnings per share of $2.78. In its 2021 financial outlook, the company expects its full-year sales to be between $51.8 billion to $53.8 billion. The company certainly has weathered through the pandemic well given its solid growth and progress made in its pipeline in 2020. With all things considered, will you buy MRK stock?
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Dynavax is a clinical-stage immunotherapy company. It focuses on leveraging the body’s innate and adaptive immune responses through toll-like receptor (TLR) stimulations. In essence, the company is developing cutting-edge vaccines by utilizing this TLR biology to modulate the immune system. DVAX stock has increased by over 15% on today’s opening bell. Investors seem to be responding to the company announcing its fourth-quarter results on Thursday.
In it, the company reported that its full-year total revenue was $46.6 million, which is a 32% increase year-over-year. In 2020, the company saw both its HEPLISAV-B and CpG 1018 business make substantial progress.
For its upcoming quarter, the company expects CpG 1018 revenue to be between $40 million to $60 million. 2020 was certainly an important year for Dynavax as it continues to build a leading vaccine company that is facilitated by growing recurring revenue from both HEPLISAV-B and CpG 1018. Do you think this makes DVAX stock worth buying for the long run?
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Lixte Biotechnology Holdings
Lixte is a drug discovery company that has developed a unique, first-in-class protein phosphatase inhibitor, LB-100. LB-100 has potential widespread use as an anti-cancer agent alone and in combination with standard anti-cancer drugs and radiation. LIXT stock closed Friday’s trading session up 48.01% at $5.58. However, the company has not issued any news prior to this rally. One likely reason could be retail investors banding behind this ultra-low float stock, lifting demand, and skyrocketing its price.
Last month, the company announced an agreement on a Phase 1b clinical trial with City of Hope, a world-renowned independent cancer research and treatment center. The trial will assess the combination of Lixte’s LB-100 with a standard regimen for untreated, extensive stage-disease small cell lung cancer (ED-SCLC). SCLC comprises approximately 15% of all lung cancers worldwide, with about 30,000 new cases annually in the U.S. alone.
This collaboration, if proved successful, could be beneficial for the company in the long run given how cancer is very hard to treat. With that in mind, will you consider adding LIXT stock into your portfolio?
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Akouos Inc.
Akouos is a biotech company that is advancing precision genetic therapies. Its gene therapies have the potential to restore, improve, and preserve high-acuity physiologic hearing for people worldwide who live with disabling hearing loss. In detail, the company is focused on developing precision therapies for forms of sensorineural hearing loss. AKUS stock has been up by over 13% since Thursday and currently trades at $20.37 as of Friday’s close.
Last month, it announced the Resonate program with Blueprint Genetics. The program offers genetic testing to eligible individuals with auditory neuropathy. It hopes to better understand the genetic causes and natural history of multiple forms of sensorineural hearing loss. This could pave the way for Akouos to develop novel genetic medicines for individuals with disabling hearing loss.
Akouos will also utilize Blueprint Genetics Comprehensive Hearing Loss and Deafness Panel that includes more than 230 genes associated with genetic forms of hearing loss. Given the excitement surrounding the company, will you consider buying AKUS stock?
