Posts Tagged ‘Biotech Stocks’

BNVI perks, SIRI, FSGI falter

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010

Bionovo Inc. (NasdaqCM: BNVI) climbed 31.68 percent in price to $1.33 near lunch time Wednesday, on volume of 1,604,200 shares, nearly nine times its daily average. The Emeryville, California-based company said Wednesday said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the clinical development plan for its lead drug candidate, Menerba, for treating hot flashes related to menopause.

Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NasdaqGS: SIRI) enjoyed healthy volume of 32,853,681 shares mid-Wednesday, ahead of the pace of its usual daily average volume of 74,982,700 shares. The satellite radio concern saw its stock price falter 2.01 percent to $1.46. Last week, SIRI reported third-quarter revenue of $722.5 million, up 15% from the prior-year quarter, and net income of $67.6 million, compared to a loss of $151.5 million.

First Security Group Inc. (NasdaqGS: FSGI) listed lower by noon ET Wednesday by 22.08 percent in price to $1.20. Volume in FSGI hit 71,627, more than four times its daily average. As of September 30, FSGI reported a third-quarter net loss of $30.2 million resulting in basic and diluted net loss of $1.92 per share for the quarter.

WRLS, C climb, DXCM struggles

Friday, November 5th, 2010

Tellular Corpoartion (NasdaqGM: WRLS) roared out of the blocks Friday, gaining 47.41 percent in the first hour of trading to $5.97. Initial volume of 790,060 shares trampled its three-month daily average of 20,212 shares. Excitement followed in the wake of Thursday’s announcement of Q4 revenues and earnings. The Chicago-based wireless concern reported revenue of $12.0 million, up 17 percent year-over-year, and net income before non-cash items of $2 Million.

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) led the volume parade in early trading Friday, trading in 274,020,554 shares in just the first hour. Normal volume for a day is around 448,837,000 shares. The banking conglomerate also gained 3.35 percent to $4.47. The news comes in spite of word this morning that several Citigroup, Inc. investors, including Charles Schwab Corp. and hedge fund Cambridge Place Investment Management have sued the bank over its mortgage underwriting processes.

DexCom Inc. (NasdaqGM: DXCM) took a thumping of 19.34 percent in early Friday trading to $11.22. Volume was 3,568,238 shares, dwarfing its three-month daily average of 337,547 shares. The company, which develops and markets continuous glucose monitoring systems for use by diabetics, reported total third-quarter revenue of $11.7 million, up 61 percent from the same quarter in 2009, but a net loss of $13.4 million, down from $13.5 million for the year-ago quarter.

UPI, SNCR, LINC Among Top Gainers at the Closing Bell

Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010

Shares of Uroplasty, Inc. (Nasdaq: UPI) closed 19 percent higher on Wednesday after the company announced on Tuesday that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has published, in the November, 2010 Federal Register, the anticipated Category I CPT code for Posterior Tibial Nerve Stimulation (PTNS). The publication was noted by the company as an “important milestone” that will allow for a broader base of coverage for the procedure. “As we have previously announced and discussed, we are working diligently with medical directors of insurance companies to educate them on our strong clinical data, and we will now be able to present to them the specifics of the new CPT code and the associated [relative value units],” said Uroplasty’s president and CEO David Kaysen in a statement. Shares of Uroplasty are up more than 25 percent in the past three months.

Shares of Synchronoss Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNCR) closed 16 percent higher on Wednesday after the company announced third quarter profit of $2.1 million, or 5 cents per share, down 32 percent from $3.1 million, or 10 cents per share a year earlier. Excluding certain items, the wireless services provider said it earned 20 cents per share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters forecast net income of 17 cents per share. The company’s third quarter revenue was up 34 percent to $44.5 million, from $33.1 million a year earlier. Adjusted revenue of $46.8 million topped analysts’ average estimate of $44.6 million. “With the influx of connected devices, we view Synchronoss’ online activation, provision, backup and transfer technologies as core to simplifying the process and lowering costs,” Wedbush analyst Scott Sutherland wrote. “Given the most material competition remains more costly in-store and call center alternatives, we believe Synchronoss will remain on a healthy growth curve.” Shares of Synchronoss Technologies are up about 35 percent over the past three months.

Shares of Lincoln Educational Services Corp. (Nasdaq: LINC) closed 17 percent higher on Wednesday after the for-profit education company reported third quarter profit of 76 cents a share was ahead of analysts’ estimates for 62 cents a share. Lincoln reported third quarter revenue of $167.2 million, slightly under analysts’ estimates of $167.5 million. The company also raised its full-year EPS guidance to a range between $2.65 and $2.70, up from a range of $2.40 to $2.50. The company posted a big fall in third-quarter student starts and cut its 2010 revenue forecast to $635-$640 million from a prior view of $645-$650 million. For-profit education colleges like Lincoln are overhauling their enrollment practices to comply with new rules, after facing criticism for saddling students with big debts and not fully preparing them for jobs. The new enrollment rules are set to take effect in mid-2011. Shares of Lincoln Educational Services Corp. are down approximately 29 percent over the past three months.

Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (AVNR) – After-hours Buzz Stock of the Day

Friday, October 29th, 2010

Shares of Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: AVNR) were up more than 15 percent in after-hours trading on Friday after it was reported on TheStreet.com that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Avanir’s Nuedexta for the treatment of pseudobulbar affect.

Pseudobulbar affect (PBA), sometimes called emotional incontinence refers to a neurologic disorder characterized by involuntary crying or uncontrollable episodes of crying and/or laughing, or other emotional displays. Prevalence estimates place the number of people with PBA between 1.5 million and 2 million in the United States alone. However, given the fact that PBA is a relatively common disorder among patients with various neurologic conditions, its actual prevalence may be higher.
[–quote–]
Carol Werther of SummerStreet Research Partners, an independent healthcare research firm, predicted the approval in an Oct. 15 note to clients.

“We expect a label to treat the signs and symptoms of PBA with warnings not to use with drugs that increase QTc wave prolongation,” the note stated. “Data from the advanced cardiac safety study (ACSS) indicates that AVP-923, even using a 10mg dose of quinidine, still prolongs the QTc (mean of 8.9 ms), just above the level the FDA considers no risk for Torsades de Pointes. (5 msec). Nevertheless, we do not think this will stop approval as many marketed drugs have similar profiles. AVNR submitted a risk map program to prevent abuse of AVP-923.”

Nuedexta, formerly known as AVP-923 and the trade name Zenvia™, is a combination of two well-characterized compounds, the active ingredient dextromethorphan, and the enzyme inhibitor quinidine, which serves to increase the bioavailability of dextromethorphan. Avanir is developing Nuedexta for use in PBA and diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain.

“The FDA approval of NUEDEXTA marks an important milestone for people living with PBA, an under-recognized and debilitating neurologic condition,” said Keith Katkin, president and chief executive officer of Avanir in a statement. “The approval of NUEDEXTA also marks AVANIR’s transition toward becoming a commercial enterprise, ready to support the successful launch of the first FDA-approved treatment for PBA. We expect that NUEDEXTA will be available by prescription during the first quarter of 2011.”

Shares of Avanir Pharmaceuticals are down about 13 percent in the past three months.

Notable Nasdaq Gainers – BSDM, LOJN, SIMG, RFMD

Wednesday, October 27th, 2010

Shares of BSD Medical Corporation (Nasdaq: BSDM) were up as much as 25 percent from Tuesday’s closing price of $3.94 per share, on Wednesday. Shares traded as high as $4.95 per share with nearly double the company’s average three-month volume. BSD Medical won the Frost & Sullivan “Technology Innovation of the Year Award” in 2005 for its BSD-2000 system. But its biggest money generator is the MicroThermX. BSDM’s patented “phased-array” technology generates heat allows doctors to kill massive clusters of cancer cells. Shares BSDM are up roughly 280 percent since the FDA granted the company clearance to market its MicroThermX Microwave Ablation System (MTX-180) for ablation of soft tissue in August of this year.

Shares of JoJack Corp. (Nasdaq: LOJN) were up more than 34 percent from Tuesday’s closing price, in morning trading on Wednesday on nearly 7x the company’s average three month volume. The car recovery technology developer recently reported a 47 percent increase in third quarter international sales. The company also reported net income of $2.7 million, or 15 cents per share, up from a loss of $13.4 million, or 78 cents per share a year earlier. Consolidated third quarter revenue climbed 7 percent to $38.5 million, from a year ago. Shares of LOJN are up about 47 percent over the past three months.

Shares of chip maker, Silicon Image, Inc. (Nasdaq: SIMG) were up as much as 44 percent from Tuesday’s closing price, in morning trading on Wednesday. Shares traded as high as $6.57, up from Tuesday’s closing price of $4.55. Silicon Image earned $9.5 million, or 12 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $15.5 million, or 21 cents per share a year ago. Excluding items, the company earned 18 cents per share. Third quarter revenue increased 63 percent to $60.5 million, which included a $7.5 million royalty revenue catch-up. Analysts on average, expected the company to post earnings of a nickel per share (excluding items), on revenue of $49 million. The company sees fourth quarter revenue in the range of $46 million to $48 million, above analysts’ estimates of $45.4 million.

RF Micro Devices, Inc. (Nasdaq: RFMD) was up 13 percent from Tuesday’s closing price, in morning trading on Wednesday after the company posted revenue of $285.8 million, and EPS of 19 cents for its fiscal second quarter ended October 2. Analysts on average expected EPS of 16 cents, on revenue of $275.9 million. “On the strength of new product launches and diversification efforts, we continue to reduce our exposure at our largest customer while sales to all other customers grew year-over-year by approximately 53%,” said RFMD’s CEO Bob Bruggeworth in a conference call. “s a result, RFMD delivered our sixth consecutive quarter of expanding operating income with the September quarter representing another company record.” Shares of RFMD are up as much as 61 percent over the past three months.