Looking For The Top Biotech Stocks To Buy In February?
Any investors worth their salt can tell you that biotech stocks are among the top performers on the stock market today. Whether it is explosive gains within a day or long-term gains, the industry has benefitted investors. Right now, as we enter another intense earnings week, some of the top biotech stocks are releasing their financials. For most biotech investors, it is a great time to see how the big players in the field have performed throughout the fiscal year.
To highlight, vaccine superstar Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) will be posting its fourth-quarter fiscal tomorrow. As the coronavirus pandemic continues to ravage the world, investors could be eager to hear what the company has in store for 2021. Additionally, leading HIV treatment developer Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD) is also reporting its earnings on Thursday. Even amidst earnings season, the company continues to innovate in the field as it announced a collaboration with Gritstone Oncology (NASDAQ: GRTS) earlier today. If anything, this speaks to the constantly evolving nature of biotech. As a result, eagle-eyed investors will likely be on the lookout for the best biotech stocks this week. With that in mind, here are four biotech giants in focus right now.
Top Biotech Stocks To Buy [Or Sell] This Week
- Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRTX)
- Bio-Techne Corporation (NASDAQ: TECH)
- PerkinElmer Inc. (NYSE: PKI)
- AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV)
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.
First up is global biotech firm Vertex. The company specializes in the development of medicines for people with serious diseases. Its development pipeline consists of treatments for cystic fibrosis (CF), pain, sickle cell disease, and Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). Admittedly, VRTX stock has been trading sideways over the past year. Could its upcoming fourth-quarter earnings call after today’s market close change that? Well, analysts appear to think so.
General estimates suggest that Vertex could be looking at a profit of $2.55 per share for the quarter. This would mark an incredible 50% leap year-over-year. Adding to that, Wall Street is forecasting a 12% growth in revenue to the tune of $1.58 billion. Impressively, equity analysts at Cowen (NASDAQ: COWN) commented, “We expect the current dislocation between Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ (VRTX) trading price and the value of its CF franchise to be only temporary. We would use the recent stock weakness to build a position.” With all this in mind, investors may be wondering if it is a good time to buy on the dip.
Last week, Vertex received two FDA regulatory updates regarding its child CF and T1D projects. Should the company see another strong quarter, could VRTX stock return to its pre-pandemic heights? You tell me.
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Bio-Techne Corporation
Bio-Techne is another top biotech company to watch this week. The Minnesota-based global life science company specializes in providing clinical tools and bioactive reagents. The company does so for the fields of research and clinical diagnostics with its portfolio of over 500,000 products. With TECH stock doubling in value since the March lows, investors could be curious to see if it has more room to grow moving forward.
For starters, Bio-Techne is slated to post its second-quarter fiscal before the market opens tomorrow. Given it reported a solid first quarter back in November, should investors be excited about TECH stock? Well, Bio-Techne saw green across the board in its last quarter. It saw year-over-year jumps of 124% in earnings per share and 131% in net income. CEO Chuck Kummeth summarized, “Achieving over 10% organic growth, including strong results from our key growth platforms, shows the strength of our diverse portfolio of tools that researchers are turning to in all aspects of life sciences research.”
If that wasn’t enough, it also made a recent strategic investment last week in life science company Eminence. As the company continues to provide the necessary industry tools, it could be looking at long-term growth. Could this mean big gains for TECH stock in the long run? I’ll let you decide.
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PerkinElmer Inc.
Thirdly, we will be looking at PerkinElmer. The company specializes in creating tools for several key fields in the biotechnology industry. This includes, but is not limited to, diagnostics, food production, and industrial testing. Notably, its coronavirus test kit received emergency use authorization (EUA) from the FDA back in October. In the midst of the pandemic, it would make sense that the company’s tools see higher demand. As PKI stock had one of its best years on the stock market in 2020, investors could be watching it ahead of its fourth-quarter results tomorrow.
According to analysts’ current consensus estimates place PerkinElmer at a profit of $3.01 per share. In this case, we could see a 418% year-over-year surge in its upcoming earnings call. With expectations set this high, it would not surprise me if investors had PKI stock on their watchlists.
In terms of business highlights, the company has been busy throughout January 2021. On January 14, it received a EUA for its coronavirus test kit to be used in asymptomatic testing. This is excellent news for the company as the use for its test kit has been expanded massively. Moreover, it would help to further slow down the spread of the coronavirus, which in turn, bumps up demand for the company’s kit. As PerkinElmer shows no signs of slowing down, will you be adding PKI stock to your watchlist?
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AbbVie Inc.
Last but not least, we have biopharmaceutical titan AbbVie. The company’s portfolio consists of projects relating to immunology, oncology, virology, and women’s health. Its flagship arthritis medication, Humira is noted as the best-selling drug in the world. Furthermore, it also acquired Botox developer Allergan back in May. Despite its strong portfolio, ABBV stock has only gained 58% since the March selloffs. As it currently trades just above the $100 mark, could investors be looking at an exciting opportunity in ABBV stock ahead of its earnings call on Wednesday?
Arguably, the company reported solid financials in its third-quarter fiscal back in October. AbbVie reported a 52% year-over-year increase in total revenue which added up to $12.9 billion. The company also ended the quarter with $7.89 billion in cash on hand. Aside from that, AbbVie also raised its dividend by 10% in the quarter. This places ABBV stock’s total dividend yield at 5.1% beating its industry average of 2.3%.
By and large, it was a combination of ABBV stock’s valuation and dividend that reportedly caught Warren Buffett’s eye. This in turn led to Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) picking up the stock back in the third quarter of 2020. Given all of this, could it be a good time to buy ABBV stock? Your guess is as good as mine.
