June 3, 2023 12:13pm

However, inflation, risk, the Fed and coming Democratic manipulation of the new “deal” agreement by the administration has yet to felt

The Biostage (OTCQB: BSTG) Chronicles: Question, is it back pimping, pumping, and promoting the stock (+$0.20) as 1,141 shares traded after a week of downslides and flat trading?

Pre-open Indications: 5 Hits and 0 Miss

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The week in review, end of May and beginning of June

If I have learned one thing as a former research analyst in a venture and public fund, operating executive, adjunct (MBA) business school professor now a journalist; it is that your life and your portfolio are largely tied to your knowledge of price movements and questioning pricing targets.

 

The Dow closed UP +701.19 points (+2.12%), the S&P closed UP +61.35 points (+1.45%) while the Nasdaq closed UP +139.78 points (+1.07)

 

Henry’omics:

We need to more than consider the economic environment rising rates and inflation to comprehend the micro re “our” universe of cell and gene therapy companies.

Friday, a strong jobs report and a passed debt ceiling bill that averted a U.S. default weighs on the upcoming Fed rate question.

for the week, the S&P 500 was up +1.9& and the Nasdaq popped +2.1% higher while the Dow’s was up +2.1% week.

The CBOE Volatility Index — also known as the “fear gauge” as it approximates expectations for how much the S&P 500 will rise and fall in coming weeks — closed Friday at 14.60, its lowest since Feb. 19, 2020, shortly before the Covid pandemic closed the economy.

Economic Data Docket: Nonfarm payrolls grew much more than expected in May, rising 339,000 despite economists expecting a relatively modest 190,000 increase. But Friday data also showed average hourly earnings rose less than economists expected year over year, while the unemployment rate was higher than anticipated.

 

Friday (6/2) … RegMed Investors’ (RMi) pre-open: “sigh of relief and job’s Friday. Yippee-Ki-Yay, a debt ceiling vote while Thursday's sector’ action was positive, but it was just one day. I would NOT be buying into new highs but, trimming and building more cash.” … https://www.regmedinvestors.com/articles/12985

 

Pre-open Indications: 5 Hits <Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA +$2.75), Prime Medicine (PRME +$1.58), Regenxbio (RGNX +$1.06), Voyager Therapeutics (VYGR -$0.34)> and 0 Miss

 

All-Time low: Sangamo Therapeutics (SGMO) at $1.11

 

RegMed/Stem/Cell and Gene Therapy’s 35 covered equities’ Advance/Decline (A/D) lines: what happened – differences …

  • Friday’s advance/decline line opened positive at 20 up/ 15 down and 0 flat, stayed positive with 18 up/ 15 down and 2 flats at the mid-day, ending with a positive close of 26/8 and 1 flat
  • Thursday’s advance/decline line opened positive at 18 up/ 15 down and 2 flats, stayed positive with 31 up/ 3 down and 1 flat at the mid-day, ending with a positive close of 28/7 and 0 flat
  • Wednesday’s advance/decline line opened negative at 15 up/ 17 down and 3 flats, stayed negative with 9 up/ 25 down and 1 flat at the mid-day, ending with a negative close of 15/17 and 3 flats
  • Tuesday’s advance/decline line opened negative at 27 up/ 6 down and 2 flats, stayed negative with 5 up/ 29 down and 1 flat at the mid-day, ending with a negative close of 7/26 and 2 flats
  • Monday was a market holiday.

 

Key Metrics:

The iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology (IBB) and the SPDR S&P ETF (XBI) indicators:

  • Friday, the IBB was up +1.74% and the XBI was up +1.59%
  • Thursday, the IBB was up +0.39% and the XBI was up +1.31%
  • Wednesday, the IBB was up +0.11% and the XBI was up +0.99%
  • Tuesday, the IBB was down -0.72% and the XBI was down -1.28%
  • Monday - holiday

The CBOE Volatility Index (VVIX: INDEX) tracked:

  • Friday was down -1.05 point or -6.71% at 14.60
  • Thursday was down -2.13 point or -11.87% at 15.81
  • Wednesday was up +0.27 points or +1.55% at 17.73
  • Tuesday was up +0.19 points or +1.09% at 17.65
  • Monday - holiday

 

Closing Down (8 of 8):

  • Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS -$1.19 after Thursday’s +$2.04 after Wednesday’s +$0.35),
  • uniQure NV (QURE -$0.55 after Thursday’s +$1.31),
  • Voyager Therapeutics (VYGR -$0.39),
  • Bellicum Pharmaceuticals (BLCM -$0.11 after Thursday’s -$0.07),
  • Compass Therapeutics (CMPX -$0.015)
  • Homology Medicine (FIXX -$0.013),
  • Solid Biosciences (SLDB -$0.01),
  • MiMedx (MDXG -$0.01 after Thursday’s -$0.07 after Wednesday’s +$0.09),

Flat (1):

  • Precigen (PGEN)

Closing Up (10 of 26):

  • Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY +$5.00 after Thursday’s +$3.66 and Wednesday’s -$1.45)
  • Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA +$2.80 after Thursday’s +$0.90 and Wednesday’s -$0.29),
  • Beam Therapeutics (BEAM +$1.52 after Thursday’s +$0.61),
  • Blueprint Medicine (BPMC +$1.43),
  • Prime Medicine (PRME +$1.35),
  • Ultragenyx (RARE +$1.24),
  • Regenxbio (RGNX +$1.16 after Thursday’s +$1.33 and Wednesday’s -$0.27),
  • Verve Therapeutics (VERV +$0.86 after Thursday’s -$0.07 and Wednesday’s +$0.15),
  • CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP +$0.48),
  • Chinook Therapeutics (KDNY +$0.47 after Thursday’s +$0.55),

 

Q2/23 – June

  • Friday closed positive with 26 incliners, 8 decliners and 1 flat
  • Thursday closed positive with 28 incliners, 7 decliners and 0 flat

 

The BOTTOM LINE: I try to keep it simple … and short!

I follow the dictum, quoting Churchill that “short words are best, and the old words when short are best of all.”

As I have stated, “The cell and gene therapy sector WILL be experiencing yet another “flight of Icarus” …  since “our” universe have oscillated between gains and losses since the first of 2023!”

Yet, there is VALUE out there however, it’s about playing or betting the timing of the sector. Even as I had stated, “I wouldn’t be buying into this rally … I would be selling into this upside!”

The top three (3) performing in the session:

·         Friday: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY) – again, Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA) and Beam Therapeutics (BEAM)

·         Thursday: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY), Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS) – again and Regenxbio (RGNX)

·         Wednesday: Ultragenyx (RARE), Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS) and Editas Medicine (EDIT)

·         Tuesday: Chinook Therapeutics (KDNY), BioLife Solutions (BLFS) and Prime Medicine (PRME)

·         Monday - holiday

While The worst three (3) in the session:

·         Friday: Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS), uniQure NV (QURE) and Voyager Therapeutics (VYGR)

·         Thursday: BioLife Solutions (BLFS), Biostage (OTCQB: BSTG) and Adverum Biotechnologies (ADVM)

·         Wednesday: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY), Vericel (VCEL) and CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP)

·         Tuesday: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (ALNY), Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA) – again and Ultragenyx (RARE)

·         Monday - holiday

 

WHY (?) do I keep posting, so investors can get a daily update of the sector's share pricing and some individual companies TRUTHS while electronic trading chews on our portfolio edges.

I am definitely considered a contrarian depending on the session – one has to be a watcher of the ups and downs as well as measurer of sentiment. I am also a NO trust investor but, a validate and verify journalist/analyst.

Sign of the times and some BAD News: Boston cancer firm Oncorus (ONCR) is laying off "substantially all" of its workforce over the next two months, just six months after shelving its only clinical-stage drug.

 

Check your portfolio reports: Vanguard Group was fined and censured by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for errors appearing in about 8.5 million customer account statements.

 

The NO spin zone! U.S. public shareholders deserve accountability …

 

Biostage (OTCQB: BSTG) … so many issues from the past as many of those “miscreant management” members are still employed!

Friday close up +$0.20 with 1,141 shares traded after Thursday closed down -$0.17 with 1,610 shares traded, Wednesday closed flat, Tuesday closed down -$0.13 with 2,718 shares traded, Monday’s holiday and last Friday closed down -$0.15 with 341 shares traded and last Thursday closed down -$0.40 with 3,913 shares traded <3-month average =1,458 shares>

·         Biostage (OTCQB: BSTG) finally announced a clinical trial initiation for an IND that was approved on 3/20/2020 – what’s with the time (3 years and 2 months) interval? They wouldn’t have had the IND unless I (Henry) had brought in an FDA specialist and worked so many hours diligently with him and others to NOT be paid!

·         Question: Review the number of shares traded … is OTCQB: BSTG a Ponzi scheme (with their pump/promote buy and sell agenda) as shares are bought to replace those sold?

·         Accumulated deficit:  $85,901 M – still NO product in sight – a 4-to-5-year clinical trial BEFORE they can evolve to a pediatric protocol!

·         NEVER “screw” any analyst as they have a lot of friends and contacts after 35 years in the business!

·         Hopefully, BSTG will pay the new CRO having tried to NOT pay the former CRO with them having to squeeze there arrears almost NOT filing the old IND so BSTG had to pay-up after I had worked out the pay plan!

 

My question that resounds, that should be asked is how many companies are at the end of sentiments …  leash?

 

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.

Regulation Analyst Certification (Reg AC): The research analyst primarily responsible for the content of this report certifies the following under Reg AC: I hereby certify that all views expressed in this report accurately reflect my personal views about the subject company or companies and its or their securities. I also certify that no part of my compensation was, is or will be, directly or indirectly, related to the specific recommendations or views expressed in this report.