RegMed’s close: sector reversed earlier losses to finish higher

February 24, 2016 6:14pm

We are seeing the fear trade slipping as a partial response to the oversold

Also consider reflux as the process of boiling a liquid in such a way that any vapor is liquefied and returned to the stock. 

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Also my “dogs” list … read more, if you can!

Investors suffer from the paradox of information overload. If you have a smartphone in your pocket, you can access more information about the financial markets than the world's top hedge funds did 20 years ago. Yet, I bet your investment returns have not improved one iota as a result. But, who is interpreting that information … get it here!

U.S. stocks closed higher Wednesday as some stabilization in oil prices offset declines in financials to help stocks recover from an intraday decline of more than 1.5%. The Dow reclaimed a 266-point drop — its largest recovery of losses by points since 2011 — and then went on to close up 53 points. The S&P 500 erased intraday losses of more than 1% for the third time in 2016 and closed up 0.4%.

The NASDAQ closed UP +39.02 or +0.87% to 4,542.61 and the DOW closed UP +53.21 or +0.32% to 16,484.99.

A day in the life of the stem, cell and gene therapy RegMed (SCGT & RM) sector – the advance/decline line scenario of our 43 covered companies.

• Wednesday, the stem, cell and gene therapy RegMed sector opened negative with an A/DL of 4/35 and 4 flats;

• The mid-day stayed negative with an A/DL of 9/32 and 3 flats;

• The closing bell rang positive with A/DL of 23/17 and 3 flats

Henry’omics:

The stem, cell and gene therapy RegMed (SCGT&RM) sector opened negative, stayed negative as another bottom appeared at the mid-day  and closed positive (of 43 covered companies).

• SCGT&RM stocks were again traveling in a narrow range on Wednesday;

• The SCGT&RM sector has been heavily damaged through the first part of the year, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t picks to be made.

Stocks reversed sharp losses Wednesday to notch modest gains. The sector is still on edge as Q4/15 financial results have yet to be illuminated i.e. the cash burns, ATM usage, debt levels and worrying signals that weakness in share pricing and enterprise values.

Out and about – my “dogs” list:

• Athersys (ATHX) – can’t believe the spin of clinical results and as the share price increases – the likelihood of an offering i.e. rights offering (?);

• BioLife Solutions (BLFS) – it pops, drops and creeps as the leaves from the tree react to seasonality <closed -$0.01>;

• Capricor (CAPR) – headed for a financing and a whole lot of dilution and share price depreciation <closed -$0.10>;

• Caladrius Biosciences (CLBS) – going where with current CEO <closed -$0.029>;

• Cesca Therapeutics (KOOL) – can’t get out of the bathroom <closed +$0.0009>;

• ImmunoCellular (NYSEMKT: IMUC) – who hasn’t left the basement in a year <closed +$0.01>;

• Neuralstem (CUR) – even with a CEO change, won’t find its way <closed +$0.009>;

• Pluristem (PSTI) – with hyperbole as a middle name, it’s hard to believe anything they release <closed -$0.01>;

• StemCells (STEM) – its history of platform blunders and executive over-payments leave investors running for the sidelines <closed +$0.004>;

Wednesday’s “carousel” or sector indications – 3 hits and 3 miss: 

• Athersys (ATHX) closed UP – miss;
• bluebird bio (BLUE) closed UP – hit;
• Capricor (CAPR) closed DOWN – hit;
• Intrexon (XON) closed UP – miss;
• Juno Therapeutics (JUNO) closed UP – miss;
• Verastem (VSTM) closed UP – hit;

Dosing the sector – what a day for the 43 Patients:

• The market opened: NEGATIVE with 35 decliners, 4 advancers and 4 flat;

• The mid-day (12:30 pm: NEGATIVE with 32 decliners, 9 advancers and 3 flats;

• Closing bell: POSITIVE with 17 decliners, 23 advancers and 3 flats

Review my fear gauge or the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) which is scary:

·         Wednesday traded at 20.5;

·         Tuesday traded above 20;

·         Monday traded above 21;

·         Friday traded near 20.5;

·         Thursday – n/a;

·         Last, Wednesday traded above 22;

Riding the indexes and ETFs roller-coaster:

The iShares Biotechnology Stocks ETF (IBB) closed UP on Wednesday +1.36 or +0.53%

·         Tuesday declined -6.20 or -2.35%

The NASDAQ Biotechnology index (NBI) closed UP on Wednesday +14.38 or +0.53%

·         Tuesday declined -66.20 or -2.40%

The Russell 2000 (IWM) closed UP on Wednesday +0.97 to 0.96%

·         Tuesday declined -0.93 or -0.92%

The SPDR SD&P Biotech ETF (XBI) closed UP on Wednesday +0.52 or +1.08%

·         Tuesday declined  -2.42 or -4.78%

Who was UP – top 5:

• Juno Therapeutics (JUNO) closed UP +40.93 to $33.99;
• Mesoblast (MESO) +$0.91 to $6.98;
• Bluebird bio (BLUE) +$0.91 to $52.37;
• Intrexon (XON) +$0.73 to $32.28;
• Spark Therapeutics (ONCE) closed up +$0.59 to $32.79

Who was leading the declines – to of the bottom 5?

• Kite Pharma (KITE) closed down -$0.44 to $44.97;
• MiMedx (MDXG) -$0.23 to $8.09;
• Osiris (OSIR) -$0.18 to $7.19;
• Regenxbio (RGNX) -$0.16 to $12.97;
• Histogenics (HSGX) closed down -$0.14 to $2.36

Who was FLAT?

• AxoGen (AXGN) at $5.25;
• ReNeuron (RENE.L) at $2.75;
• VistaGen (VSTA) at $8.00                                    

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.