6/16 At close: Benign reaction from FED meeting. Maybe investors have accepted reality that low interest rates are not going to last forever and are less ebullient. Market needs a few days to digest Chairman Powell’s remarks. Rate hikes pushed out til 2023 but tapering could be sooner? Bank stocks are higher, gold is lower, AAPL holding $130 handle, less verve to MO smaller caps. High expectations from strong economy.
6/16 3:40 P Note my updates of past 3 days are missing?! Need to fo find out why?
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Biotech Movers During ASCO Week: Is It Trading or a Trend?
- Smaller caps and novel therapies RHAi getting traction
- Best week in Biotech for 2021; but eased on Friday.
- Earnings look positive for next Q2 reporting.
Many biotech stocks were movers this week as a bullish sentiment took hold sparked by the Biogen Aduhelm approval. Biogen trading is likely to be choppy and news driven. A few Healthcare Conferences helped the sentiment. We will recap our Mini-Healthcare portfolio tomorrow with focus on XLV, but first a biotech sector summary in a good ASCO week. We added to our core large cap portfolio with PFE. The IBB was up 1.5 % at 161.9 and the XBI up 6.9% at $135.60 and even two managed funds we own were up: FBIOX PHRSX.
We initiated a number of smaller cap buys (or additions) since Mid-May and here is the weekly performance: ARK Genomics (ARKG) up 8%, CRISPER Therapeutics (CRSP) up 11%, Cryoport (CYRX) up 4%, Mind Medicine (MNMD) up 7.2%, Pacific Bioscience (PACB) up 10.68%, Veracyte (VCYT) up 9.4% . We wrote about these stocks in the past and many were damaged in the last sell-off. They are high beta and volatile .
Here are several (among many!) big biotech movers of the week (no positions):
Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (ARWR) up 16 % to 88 on last week’s announcement on Phase 2b (RNAi) therapy for severe hypertrigyceridemia (SHTG).
Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company (BHVN) up 10% on potential of migraine drug Nurtec.
Dicerna (DRNA) pharmaceuticals up over 15% for the week, another RNAi gene silencing therapy Company with 3 programs in clinical trial.
Fate Therapeutics (FATE) recovered up about 25% from downtrend on interim Phase I data for B cell Lymphoma.
DNA Tools companies saw gains: A, GH, ILMN, NVTA, PKI, TWST, TXG.
Gene therapy stock leader NTLA was up 10 points near 52 week high. Also having a good week were vaccine leaders BNTX and MRNA.