March 9, 2018 5:58pm
Depends on the session, the market and their sensitivities – that’s called sentiment
It reminds me that truth is still caught in the rhetoric of which version is malleable in these times
Never believe in what others think, until you understand where the facts begin and end
Be accountable …
Companies in my pre-open headlights: 8; 3 HITs and 5 MISS (selling into the end-of-day strength renders $ to jump on or wait for other dips. Algorithmic moves make me very nervous)
I make a commitment to provide need-to-know “facts in evidence” of what’s happening in the stem, cell and gene therapy and regenerative medicine sector as equity volatility is one tactical signal for stocks.
Interpretation, insight and translation with an end-of-day recap of the sessions impact, settlement with an opinion of what could or should happen next thrown in.
Henry’omics:
From the pre-open’s newsletter, “…The sector craves headline to power share pricing … as the story needs to be told however, how will these “stories” be valued more than a day or just a reminder to sell into its strength. What we have been seeing is higher pricing followed by declines as the scenario most likely ahead, though with more volatility.”
As I had stated, “the trouble with being right is about posing hard questions and outspoken answers in a sector that does not always inspire confidence … I care and have been wrong and in most cases was just about being “early” … Remember, being popular is not my goal as to my recommendations and opinions … Being right is relegating risk to short-term alarms avoiding near and long-term consequences.”
Volume is still LOW except in ADRO, ONVO and XON to the upside with VTGN, MDXG and VCEL to the downside.
Time to think and act … cautiously with sector volatility seen over the past month is recognition by investors that the risks are two-sided!
The BIGGEST question this sector is … will bluebird bio (BLUE) continue to rise or be subject to the downside by greed …? I believe the trajectory of its pricing growth is suspect – a contrarian view.
The advance/decline line scenario of 40 covered companies:
- The mid-day was barely positive with the A/DL to 19/18 and 3 flats;
- 2 p.m. continued positive with an A/DL of 20/19 and 1 flat;
- The close was positive with an A/DL of 21/17 and 2 flat;
Companies in my headlights: eight (8) …
- Applied Genetic Technologies (AGTC) closed down -$0.35 – hit;
- bluebird bio (BLUE) closed up +$6.00 – miss;
- BioLife Solutions (BLFS) closed down -$0.35 – miss;
- Caladrius Biosciences (CLBS) closed up +$0.18 – miss;
- Cellectis SA (CLLS) closed up +$0.44 – miss;
- Cytori Therapeutics (CYTX) closed down -$0.003 – hit;
- Fate Therapeutics (FATE) closed up +$0.44 – miss;
- Vericel (VCEL) closed down -$0.25 – hit;
MY working trend lines:
… The greatest volume to the downside: MDXG, VCEL, CYTX, VTGN and ADVM
… Upside volume was weighted to: XON, SGMO, ONVO, ADRO and IMUC
… Biggest $ downside: RENE.L (-$1.50, few weeks post a 1 for 100 reverse), ONCE (-$1.14), MDXG (-$0.50), BLFS (-$0.38) and QURE (-$0.38)
… Largest $ upside: BLUE (+$6.00), AXGN (+$2.10), XON (+$0.93), STML (+$0.90) and SGMO (+$0.85)
… Flat: AST and BSTG
Daily analytics:
The Dow closed back above 25,000 and the NASDAQ ended at a record on Friday as markets appeared to shake off worries about tariffs on steel and aluminum to focus on an unexpectedly strong jobs report.
- The Dow surged 440.53 points, or 1.8%, to end at 25,335.74.
- The S&P 500 index climbed 47.60 points, or 1.7%, to close at 2,786.57.
- The NASDAQ added 132.86 points, or 1.8%, to finish at 7,560.81, up 4.2% for the week
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market,
- Friday traded at 14.64, down -11.49% …
- Thursday traded at 16.54, down -6,87%
- Wednesday traded at 17.85, down -2.78%
- Tuesday traded at 18.36, down -1.98%
- Monday traded at 18.73, down -4.39%
- Last Friday traded at 19.59, down -12.82%
The iShares Russell 2000 (IWM) indicated:
- Friday was up +1.57%
- Thursday -0.22%
- Wednesday +0.88%
- Tuesday +1.06%
- Monday +0.85%
- Last Friday +1.57%
The iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology (IBB) indicated:
- Friday was up +1.55%
- Thursday +0.73%
- Wednesday +0.61%
- Tuesday +0.26%
- Monday +1.10%
- Last Friday +2.44%
The count - decliners versus gainers:
……. look at the differences in decliners:
- Friday’s decliners ranged from -0.74% <BTX -$0.02> to -7.22% <AGTC -$0.35> in 17 equities;
- Thursday’s decliners ranged from -0.12% <BLCM -$0.01> to -8.67% <VTGN -$0.13> in 22 equities;
- Wednesday’s decliners ranged from -2.41% <KOOL -$0.07> to -8.45% <IMUC -$0.03> in 9 equities;
- Tuesday’s decliners ranged from -0.13% <BLCM -$0.01> to -6.09% <MESO -$0.47> in 13 equities;
- Monday’s decliners ranged from -0.34% <RGNX -$0.10> to -3.17% <XON -$0.51> in 12 equities;
- Last Friday decliners ranged from -0.21% <CLBS -$0.01> to -3.77% <BSTG -$0.12> in 7 equities;
Versus
… Look at the percentage’s (%) and spreads …
- Friday’s gainers ranged from +0.65% <ISCO +$0.01> to +10.76% <ADRO +$0.85> in 21 equities;
- Thursday’s gainers ranged from +0.24% <BLUE +$0.55> to +6.67% <ADRO +$0.50> in 17 equities;
- Wednesday’s gainers ranged from +0.59% <BCLI +$0.02> to +26.90% <RGNX +$7.95> in 29 equities;
- Tuesday’s gainers ranged from +0.16% <ONCE +$0.10> to +20.70% <IMUC +$0.06> in 22 equities;
- Monday’s gainers ranged from +0.08% <QURE +$0.02> to +41.92% <VCEL +$3.50> in 27 equities;
- Last Friday’s gainers ranged from +0.14% <JUNO +$0.12> to +24.73% <XON +$3.19> in 30 equities;
Opinions expressed are those of the author and are subject to change, and not intended to be a forecast of future events, a guarantee of future results, nor investment advice.
Whether information or intelligence is good, bad or somewhere in between; I put into context what is relevant and useful for investors. All investments are subject to risks. Investors should consider investment objectives.
Henry McCusker, the editor and publisher of RegMed Investors does not hold or have positions in securities referred to in this publication.
