Higher open expected; RegMed investors’ analysis, tails of the tape

June 8, 2016 7:16am

… Ongoing and recent financings, SEC issues, trading halts and ASCO’s end drop “dimes”

Where do investors turn for insight and perspective - I say intelligently what others won't, so you can do what others can't!

I offer a handful of pertinent facts defining the who, when, where, which and what of it!

Where is today’s market going? 

Indexes and ETFs: the IBB is DOWN, the XLV is FLAT, the XBI and IWM are UP

Investing actions: BLCM, CAPR, KITE, MESO and ONCE

Dow futures are UP +0.12% and NASDAQ futures are UP +0.09 %

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wednesday as U.S. crude futures reach new eight-month highs.

European stocks traded lower amid concerns over the health of the global economy.

Asian markets closed mixed, amid a muted reaction to China's May trade data, but the energy sector got a boost after oil prices settled above $50 a barrel on Tuesday for the first time in nearly 11 months.

Data docket: Job openings and labor turnover (JOLTs) data is released today.

The stem, cell and gene therapy regenerative medicine (SCGT&RM) sector closed NEGATIVE on Tuesday, POSITIVE on Monday, NEGATIVE on Friday, POSITIVE on Thursday and last Wednesday.

The stem, cell and gene therapy regenerative medicine sector’s record after the last 5 days (of 43 covered companies):

• Tuesday closed NEGATIVE with 32 decliners, 10 advancers and 1 flat;
• Monday closed POSITIVE with 12 decliners, 28 advancers and 3 flats;
• Friday closed NEGATIVE with 16 decliners, 26 advancers and 1 flat;
• Thursday closed POSITIVE with 16 decliners, 24 advancers and 3 flats;
• Last, Wednesday closed POSITIVE with 16 decliners, 26 advancers and 1 flat;

Remembering Tuesday’s post, “Any strength was sold into while some of yesterday’s <Monday’s> losers continued to decline as investors are … disenfranchised.”

• I have more than frequently stated, it is a trading sector, not, an investing market.

I believe this is so because it’s a struggle to stop the downward flow as traders, algorithms and the “dark, ETF and index pools” kill any upside!

• As investors, we should review the above rotational aspect or pattern of each week’s closes. Why should you care about this? Because many investors are too complacent about the nature of their investments, thinking that the end of the downside will appear.

However, sector and market risk is very high as we see the issues of recent and on-going financings and the news of StemCells’ (STEM) wind-down, Osiris’ (OSIR) issues of receivables, collections driving the non-filing of Qs and Ks followed by resulting executive changes, and recently Mesoblast’s (MESO) trading halt.

• At the same time, the sector’s valuations are questionable in relation to market comparables,

As they say, it's a "market of stocks," not a "stock market."

Tuesday’s active sector stocks and Wednesday’s rotation candidates:

• Northwest Bio (NWBO) -9.89%;
• StemCells (STEM) -9.66%;
• Opexa (OPXA) -5.20%;
• Bellicum (BLCM) -4.20%;
• Sangamo (SGMO) -4%;
• Capricor (CAPR) +9.60%;
• Fate Therapeutics (FATE) +12.73%;
• ImmunoCellular (NYSEMKT: IMUC) +10.13;
• Athersys (ATHX) +3.77%;
• Organovo (ONVO) +2.03%

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 Tuesday down -2.56% and is DOWN -0.17% in Wednesday’s pre-market;
• The SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) closed Tuesday down -1.76%  and is UP +0.07% in Wednesday’s  pre-market;
• NASDAQ Biotechnology (NBI) closed down Tuesday -2.53%;
• The Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) closed down Tuesday -0.62% and is FLAT in Wednesday’s pre-market;
• The iShares Russell 2000 (IWM) closed Tuesday up +0.34% and is UP +0.07% in Wednesday’s pre-market.

Companies in my spotlight:

Bellicum Pharma (BLCM) closed DOWN -$0.57 to $13.01. Oversold – BUY;

Capricor (CAPR) closed UP +$0.46 to $3.69. June has seen appreciation <$3.11, $3.12, $3.23 and $3.23>but, has the pricing gotten ahead of itself – what has been the driving force? I have been a critic and I won’t change – Maintaining SELL;

Kite (PHARMA) closed DOWN -$1.36 to $56.06 after Monday’s +$5.34 after Friday’s -$2.79. KITE is riding the “horse” of receiving initial regulatory approvals next year for a type of immunotherapy treatment known as chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapies. KITE aims to file this year for U.S. FDA approval of its therapy, KTE-C19, for patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) – Maintaining BUY;

Mesoblast (MESO) has been experiencing a trading halt and light could “shine” on the issues on Friday. Could MESO’s trading halt be related to its purchase of Osiris (OSIR) assets?

Spark Therapeutics (ONCE) closed DOWN -$1.79 to $53.99. The after-market indication is -$0.18 – SELL;

Opinions expressed are those of the author and are subject to change, and are 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.

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