Get started

Pharmaceuticals

Pharmaceuticals showing strength this earnings seasonIt's been a banner quarter for large-cap pharmaceutical companies. We've had earnings beats and guidance upgrades from GlaxoSmithKline, Biogen, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck, Celgene, and Procter & Gamble. More earnings beats may be coming, with Amgen reporting today after market and Amarin tomorrow. In my opinion, the whole sector is set to surge, and the leveraged Direxion Biotech Bull ETF could be a very strong play this quarter if you can find a good entry point.
AMEX:LABULong
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
AMGN attempting trend line breakout ahead of earningsAmgen is attempting a breakout above its one-month downward trend line this morning. I will wait to enter until I see a change in volume. Currently there's bearish divergence on the volume profile, which suggests that this may correct downward before confirming the breakout. Amgen reports earnings tomorrow, and has a positive earnings surprise prediction from Zacks. Amgen has beaten analyst estimates 7 of 8 quarters in the last 2 years. The company's recent price weakness and great valuation (15.8% below the average analyst price target) makes it a good candidate for a pop on an earnings beat.
NASDAQ:AMGNLong
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
Near 20-year lows, Amneal is still too riskyGeneric drug maker Amneal has been slowly melting down since 2015, falling from $50 per share to today's closing price of $3.44. Amneal makes money, though it missed estimates last quarter by about $0.04 per share. S&P Capital IQ rates it an undervalued, high quality, and financially healthy company, but I think that overstates the case. In my opinion this company is at real financial risk. Amneal's cash reserve shrank by 3/4 year-over-year, while its accounts receivable grew in an equal amount. That suggests that while Amneal's assets may look good on paper, it may not be very liquid. Amneal may need to do a better job with collections. Furthermore, ongoing litigation over price fixing and the opioid epidemic exposes Amneal to potential damages of $1.2 billion, almost its total current assets. Amneal has some support at its current share price as it approaches lows from back in 2008 and 2002-2003. It also got an analyst upgrade today from SVB Leerink after the analytics firm determined that of the major generic drug makers, Amneal has the least exposure to that ongoing litigation I mentioned. (Endo Phramaceuticals has the most exposure, and Teva comes in second.) However, given the enormity of the drug makers' exposure, saying Amneal is the least exposed doesn't mean much. If the litigation plays out in the generic drug makers' favor, Amneal will be a great stock available at bargain basement pricing. Until then, this stock is much too risky. It may continue to fall to its 1998 lows of under $1 per share.
A
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
Look for Merck to respect trend line before enteringMerck ended the day near the bottom of its parallel channel, right above a high-volume support node at 8.19 and a trend line that's parallel with channel bottom. After hours, the price has moved below both the support and the trend line, but in my experience, after hours moves don't necessarily mean much. The real test will be tomorrow after market open. If the trend line breaks, then the price will test the bottom of the channel. That will be an opportunity for an entry with a tight stop loss. Merck had a product launch after hours today (a smart pet feeder) that could help move the price upward, but honestly this stock has so many catalysts that I'm not sure investors pay much attention to them anymore. This one is pretty minor in the scheme of things. More important factors are Merck's strong analyst ratings and long history of earnings beats. One possible downside catalyst is Merck's slightly negative Earnings Surprise Prediction from Zacks.
NYSE:MRKLong
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
AVROBIO not a good value despite great clinical trial resultsAVROBIO got a good pop today from very positive Phase 2 clinical trial results from its kidney drug. Unquestionably the news was good; the drug shows strong efficacy and no adverse events. However, this was only a Phase 2 trial so there's a long way still to go in the approval process. Meanwhile, the company is losing money and is rated as an overvalued and financially unhealthy company by analytics firms. AVRO has some support from historical volume in the range from 15.00-15.50, so it could get a short-term bounce from that level, but I wouldn't play this one long-term.
A
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
1
Arvinas Pharmaceuticals likely to reach 25.60Arvinas Pharmaceuticals is on a run thanks to FDA approval of phase 1 clinical trials on a new drug. It's above critical resistance levels and appears to have clearance up to 25.60. Personally I won't be taking a position in this one, though. Arvinas's earnings are pretty garbage, and honestly a phase 1 clinical trial doesn't mean much in this industry. We've also got a Democratic debate coming up, so I've exited all my positions in pharmaceuticals and healthcare lest they take a hit due to rhetoric about universal healthcare or drug price controls. There's lots of litigation around the ACA right now that provides additional risk. I'm not sure how this fight will play out or how markets would react to the various outcomes.
NASDAQ:ARVNLong
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
ITCI bullish call activity and insider buyingITCI is moving mostly horizontally lately, and there's definite room for downside to its channel bottom around 10.40, so this is a risky play. However, a large stock purchase a couple days ago by one of the board of directors triggered a large volume of bullish option activity. Possibly the director purchased stock in anticipation of forthcoming clinical trial results that he expects to be positive. Watch this one closely and look for an opportunity to buy nearer the channel bottom. Alternatively, wait for upside channel breakout. ITCI has generally poor analyst ratings and negative earnings. However, it's made progress toward profitability and generally delivered earnings beats in recent quarters. It next reports on August 6.
NASDAQ:ITCILong
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
1
Pieris Pharmaceuticals upward channelPieris is in an upward channel and looking bullish. Analyst ratings on the stocks aren't great, but Zacks has given it a HUGE Earnings Surprise Prediction (13.25%!), which should help the stock continue its run until the next report date in early August. Be aware, however, that it is approaching some stiff resistance above $4.60. It should rise Monday, but then it may go horizontal for a while until the channel pushes it upward.
PLong
by ChristopherCarrollSmith
2
Buy ICPT at this multiple support - 8:1 reward to risk ratioPattern: $84-$90 support has proven itself a multiple times. Stock is in a medium term consolidation pattern between $85 to $130 range. Edge: Buying so close to or right at support gives us a great reward to risk ratio. If the stock breaks below support, we are stopped out for a small loss, but if support is protected again, we have more higher upside. Risk Management: Bought at $87 Stop Loss = $84 Profit target 1 = $113 Profit target 2 = $130 Profit target 3 = open Risking $3 to make at least $26 for PT1. That's over 8:1 ratio for just PT1!
ILong
by ZuneTrades
Long If The Pattern ContinuesHere we can see that for the past INTERCEPT PHARMACEUTICALS INC has been finding support at around in around $87, which has been confirmed 5 times, and a resistance of about $116-$120, which is a little less defined but just looking at the chart, it is there. Once the pattern proves itself that price action is going bull up to support, that's when I will go long. But for now we wait, anything could happen. Also looking at the chart, we see every single time earnings come out within this pattern, price action goes bull, and very quickly. Thumbs up if you like my ideas
ILong
by forexcube860