January 24, 2017 8:17am

 

Share pricing depreciation sets the expectation of further declines

 

Double, triple and quadruple “sucking-up” to investors, current, old, new is needed and even try rotating  returners ...

 

Judgement days, weeks, months and quarters are ahead ... 

 

Who is in today’s headlights – five (5) equities and a few unnamed others, are they a BUY or a SELL?

 


 

I write in every line that investors need to avoid risks as if I were the first to be hurt if I am wrong!

 

 

BUY: AGTC, AST, BLCM, ONVO and VSTM

 

Indexes and ETFs: The IWM (+0.07%) is UP, the IBB (-0.13%) and XBI (-0.18%) while the XLV is NOT indicating

Dow futures are UP +0.03% and NASDAQ futures are UP +0.06%

 

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Tuesday as traders focused on a slew of earnings reports.

European markets were higher as investors digested fresh economic data.

Asian stocks were mixed as the dollar remained soft amid uncertainty over U.S. President Donald Trump's policies and his withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal.

 

Data docket: Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) released at 9.45 a.m. ET with existing home sales and Richmond Fed survey data due at 10 a.m. ET.

 

 

The stem, cell, gene and regenerative therapy (SCG&RT) closed NEGATIVE on Monday, Friday, Thursday, Wednesday and last Tuesday.

The SCG&RT sector’s record after the last 5 days (of 43 covered companies):

·         Monday closed NEGATIVE with 25 decliners, 13 advancers and 5 flats;

·         Friday closed NEGATIVE with 26 decliners, 15 advancers and 2 flats;

·         Thursday closed NEGATIVE with 32 decliners, 8 advancers and 3 flats;

·         Wednesday closed NEGATIVE with 22 decliners, 17 advancers and 4 flats;

·         Last Tuesday closed NEGATIVE with 37 decliners, 4 advancers and 2 flats;

 

 

Remembering Monday’s closing bell newsletter, why isn’t the sector moving up?”

Reiterating, “Sector stocks more than dipped on Monday as investors wrestled with trading, algorithms and dark pools that reinforced uncertainty over the believability of sustainable pricing as Q4/16 financial results are being codified.”

It's TIME ... after five (5) down sessions even after dancing the "limbo";  one has to straighten-up !

​Forget the near term or even a long-term value as the short-term RULES the day, weeks, months and quarters ...

Many analysts are saying M&A will drive the sector, a few deals will happen but, on the whole - there WON't be a mass exodus to other's arms for the undervalued, finance needy and out-right depressed by out-sized management compensation ... leave a few cheerios for investors!

 

 

 

You’ve made it to the office, turned on the monitor, having just gotten your coffee and it hits you - what could be today’s trades? 

Watch list:

·         The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology (IBB) closed  Monday down -0.94% and is DOWN -0.13% in Tuesday’s pre-market;

·         The SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) closed Monday down -0.47% and is DOWN -0.18% in Tuesday’s after-market;

·         The Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) closed down -0.42% Monday and is NOT indicating  in Tuesday’s pre-market;

·         The iShares Russell 2000 (IWM) closed down -0.42% on Monday and is UP +0.07% in Tuesday’s pre-market

 

                                                                                   

Companies in my headlights – short, sweet and some sour:

Applied Genetic Technologies (AGTC) closed DOWN -$0.10 to $8.40 following Friday’s $8.50 (-$0.25) after Thursday’s FLAT at $8.75, Wednesday’s $8.75 (-$0.20) following last Tuesday’s $8.95 (-0.45). has entered into a strategic R&D collaboration with Bionic Sight, an innovator in the emerging field of optogenetics and retinal coding. Through the AGTC-Bionic Sight collaboration, the companies seek to develop a new optogenetic therapy that leverages AGTC's deep experience in gene therapy and ophthalmology and Bionic Sight's innovative neuro-prosthetic device and algorithm for retinal coding. Any news is good after a drought– Maintaining BUY;

Asterias Biosciences (NYSEMKT: AST) closed UP +$0.05 to $4.80. AST announced positive efficacy results from its ongoing SCiStar P1/2a clinical trial that showed additional motor function improvement at 6-months and 9-months following administration of 10 million AST-OPC1 cells in AIS-A patients with complete cervical spinal cord injuries (SCI).Recovery of upper extremity motor function is critically important to patients with complete cervical spinal cord injuries, since this can dramatically improve quality of life and their ability to live independently – news is always a “stimulator” – BUY;

Bellicum Pharma (BLCM) closed DOWN another -$0.19 to $12.36 after Friday’s $12.55 (-$0.13) following Thursday’s $12.68 (-$0.30) following Wednesday’s $12.98 (-$0.14) following last Tuesday’s $13.12 (-$0.66). In January, the highs of $14.56 to the lows of $13.12 have been quite a momentum ride.  December began at $16.98 to its end of $13.62 while the low of November was $16.88 to its end at $16.98 while October began at $19.85 and ended at $16.88. My analysis is still oversold as or like the “limbo” <dance> how low can one go before straitening-up – Maintaining BUY;

Organovo Holdings (ONVO) closed DOWN -0.06 to $3.45 after Friday’s $3.51 (+$0.03), Thursday’s $3.48 (-$0.07), Wednesday’s FLAT at $3.55 following last Tuesday’s $3.55 (-$0.15). ONVO has the technology with the capability to really save drug developers real money. ONVO also has been recognizing revenue from its collaboration with Merck, announced in 2015, announced collaborations with the University of California, San Francisco to develop 3D bio-printed tissues for skeletal disease research, and in December signed a distributor agreement with Cosmo Bio in Japan for its NovoView Preclinical Services. Oversold – Maintaining BUY;                                                      

Verastem (VSTM) closed UP +$0.02 to $1.15 after Friday’s $1.13 (-$0.02) following Thursday’s $1.15 (-$0.02). Very simple decision, there is $2.35 of cash in the share pricing – BUY;

 

 

Whether information or intelligence is good, bad or somewhere in between; I put into context what is relevant and useful for investors.

Henry McCusker, the editor and publisher of RegMed Investors does not hold or have positions in securities referred to in this publication.

Henry’s comments are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for personalized advice. Consult your advisor about what is best for you.