October 23, 2017 8:07am

I’d be salivating on some upsides even through their half full

So I can buy another glass, this time with a green label …

 

Momentum is defined by how many gulps or sips to empty or fill a glass of upside

 

What’s the gauge of pricing expectation – monetization of information!

No subscription - you’re missing situational awareness!

 

Successful investing and trading means going upstream to obtain and quantify data to qualify actionable intelligence!

 

Pre-open indications: 5 SELL and 1 BUY


 

Successful investing and trading means going upstream to obtain and quantify data to qualify actionable intelligence!

 

Higher open expected

Dow futures are UP +0.11% (26 points) and NASDAQ futures are UP +0.17% (11.5 points)

 

 

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open Monday, as investors geared up for another batch of earnings, while keeping an eye for news surrounding who would take on the position as chair of the U.S. central bank.

European markets were higher, as investors monitored fresh corporate earnings and awaited further developments from Spain's ongoing constitutional crisis.

Asian shares wavered while Japanese stocks closed higher for a 15th consecutive day which followed a snap election in Japan on Sunday. The dollar also spiked to more than three-month highs against the yen during the session.

 

Issues that will affect the trading day: Major earnings are set to dominate some discussion

Data docket: the Chicago Fed's National Activity Index for September is set to come out at 8:30 a.m. ET.

 

 

The cell therapy sector closed POSITIVE on Friday, NEGATIVE on Thursday and Wednesday, POSITIVE on Tuesday and NEGATIVE on last Monday.

The cell therapy sector’s record over the last 5 sessions (of 43 covered companies):

·         Friday closed POSITIVE with 11 decliners, 28 advancers and 4 flats;

·         Thursday closed NEGATIVE with 24 decliners, 16 advancers and 3 flats;

·         Wednesday closed NEGATIVE with 23 decliners, 18 advancers and 2 flats;

·         Tuesday closed barely POSITIVE with 19 decliners, 20 advancers and 4 flats;

·         Last Monday closed NEGATIVE with 29 decliners, 11 advancers and 3 flats;

 

 

Henry ’omics:

From Friday night’s closing bell post, “the turn after the burn as the sector opened down, turned positive at the mid-day to close to the upside - another, I told you so … As I had stated, “Let’s just end it and come back for the oversold to be recognized for their loss of value!”

I get more calls re should I buy and average down and I respond – over whose dead portfolio – yours!

Next week will tell it all, a brief upside and another decline!

One issue, we are NOT seeing any hard sector news with sustainable upside! The problem will be from peripheral news from national or international events.

Over the short term, I say the next could come in the event of disappointment in quarterly results re cash positions and development lags!

 

 

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) is NOT indicating in Monday’s pre-market;
  • The SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) is indicated a POSITIVE +0.09% in Monday’s pre-market;
  • The Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) is indicating a POSITIVE +0.14% in Monday’s pre-open;
  • The iShares Russell 2000 (IWM) is indicating a POSITIVE +0.18% in Monday’s pre-open

 

 

Companies in my headlights:

Athersys (ATHX) closed up +$0.15 to $1.99 with 1.5 M shares traded after being down on Thursday -$0.11 to $1.84 with 1.6 M shares traded after Wednesday’s -$0.105 to $1.945 with 1.5 M shares traded after Wednesday’s -$0.05 to $2.05 with 820.6 K shares traded after being down -$0.07 to $2.10 with 990.2 K shares traded <3 month average = 1.18 M shares>. After a patent payday, there are even MORE questions re their cash position and how are they going to pay for their future, be ready for a depreciating offering post the 11/8’s Q3 results? – Maintaining SELL;

BioLife Solutions (BLFS) closed up +$0.07 to $6.43 with 173.6 K shares traded after Thursday’s +$0.26 to $6.36 with 1.6 M shares traded <3 month average = 15.1 K shares>. Too much to the upside over a very short time; what was the impetus – the fact that a client received an FDA approval – Maintaining SELL;

bluebird bio (BLUE) closed up +$3.10 to $142.55 with 882.3 K shares traded <3 month average = 828.3 k shares>. 10/11’s price was $125.45 and 10/2’s was $125.45 as was 9/5’s ($125.45) following 1/3/17’s $61.85. Celgene (CLGN), BLUE’s partner took a hit; CLGN isn’t going to buy out its collaboration until BLUE sees a new low. It will fluctuate up and down – SELL;

Spark Therapeutics (ONCE) closed UP +$1.08 to $81.87 after Thursday’s -$1.21 to $80.79 with 482.7 K shares traded after Wednesday’s $82.00, Tuesday’s $82.97, Monday’s $85.53 after last  Friday’s $84.23 <3 month average = 540.7 K shares>. Last Thursday, an FDA Advisory committee unanimously recommended an approval of Investigational LUXTURNA™ (voretigene neparvovec) for patients with Biallelic RPE65-mediated Inherited Retinal Disease. This market is selling off many of the “ups”; - BUY to SELL;

Pluristem (PSTI) closed down -$0.035 to $1.765 with 347.7 K shares traded <3 month average =510.3 K shares>. The European Patent Office has issued PSTI a patent titled, “Methods for Treating Radiation or Chemical Injury” for its PLX-R18 cell therapy. Pluristem currently holds several patents worldwide to cover placental 3D-expanded cells in the treatment of impaired hematopoietic systems when a bone marrow, cord blood, or peripheral blood transplant takes place. This important patent expands PSTI’s IP assets to include a new set of indications related to the bone marrow’s inability to produce blood cells, such as acute radiation syndrome (ARS), autoimmune diseases such as aplastic anemia, genetic disorders, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and side effects from other treatments. The pre-market indication is a POSITIVE +$0.11 or +5.95% - BUY;

uniQure (QURE) closed up +$4.11 to $19.27 with 9.9 M shares traded after Thursday’s $5.69 to $15.16 with 8.57 M shares traded after Wednesday’s down -$2.20 to $9.47  with  517 K shares traded after Tuesday’s  -$0.31 to $11.67 with 337.8 K shares traded <3 month average = 431 K shares>. QURE has acquired a patent family, with claims issued in the U.S., that broadly covers a hyperactive variant of Factor IX carrying an R338L mutation (often referred to as “FIX-Padua”) and its use in gene therapy for the treatment of coagulopathies, including hemophilia B. This patent family was acquired from the inventor, Professor Paolo Simioni, a renowned hemophilia expert at the University of Padua, Italy, who is widely recognized as the first to identify this mutant. QURE also announced that following multi-disciplinary meetings with the FDA and the EMA, QURE plans to expeditiously advance AMT-061, which combines an AAV5 vector with the FIX-Padua mutant, into a pivotal study in 2018 for patients with severe and moderately severe hemophilia B. Time to empty the glass to enjoy the upside - BUY to SELL;

 

 

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.