Will Mayo v. Prometheus Fire Up Pharma?: Kevin DeGeeter
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (5/10/12)
Newly discovered biomarkers could provide physicians with information that will aid in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. The big question for investors is whether, in light of the recent Supreme Court ruling Mayo Collaborative Services Inc. v. Prometheus Laboratories, companies will be able to profit from that innovation. In this exclusive interview with
The Life Sciences Report, Kevin DeGeeter, senior analyst with Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc., shares the names of a select group of companies with good prospects, focusing on those targeting "sweet spots" in personalized medicine. More >

Investment Banker Kevin DeGeeter's Best Idea Yet
Source: George S. Mack, The Life Sciences Report  (5/10/12)
Personalized medicine and targeted therapeutics are about narrowing down disease to achieve more definitive diagnostics and then finding more precise therapies. One could argue that every person's cancer is a different disease because the tumor cells contain the patient's own genome and are therefore different from the next individual's tumor cells. Newer genetic-based technologies are useful in detecting disease that was previously undetectable. Analyst and Director Kevin DeGeeter of New York City-based investment bank Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. follows personalized medicine and medical device companies ranging from small- to mid-cap, where investors can still reap multiples on original investment. I recently interviewed him for The Life Sciences Report and learned to look at cancer treatment in a new way. More >

Investing in Biotech Stocks: The Latest Buyout Candidate
Source: Diane Alter, Money Morning  (5/10/12)
"The M&A possibilities—as well as deep pipelines—have triggered surging investor interest in the biotech sector." More >

US May Speed Approval of 'Breakthrough' Drugs
Source: Reuters, Anna Yukhananov  (5/9/12)
"Experimental drugs that show a big effect early in development for treating serious or life-threatening diseases would get a faster and cheaper path to U.S. approval under a proposal likely to become law this year." More >

Scientists Discover New Inflammatory Target
Source: ScienceDaily  (5/9/12)
"Scientists from Queen Mary, University of London have found a new therapeutic target to combat inflammation. The findings could lead to potential therapies for millions of people who suffer from arthritis." More >

Researchers Tap into the Final Frontier: The Sea
Source: Patricia F. Dimond, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News  (5/7/12)
"Currently, 13 therapeutic agents with marine origins are in clinical development." More >

Catalysts Move Drug and Medtech Stocks: Michael Hay and Jocelyn August
Source: George S. Mack, The Life Sciences Report   (5/3/12)
When studying stock charts it is not hard to see sharp spikes up and deep nosedives related to development milestones and setbacks in the life cycle of a drug or medtech company. The analysts at San Diego-based Sagient Research Systems have made a science out of following the regulatory and media events that can move stocks. In this exclusive interview with The Life Sciences Report, Sagient Vice President Michael Hay and Senior Analyst Jocelyn August demonstrate their expertise with actionable ideas and provide names of companies through which investors might reap profits. More >

What is the 'ASCO Effect'?
Source: Deborah Baratz, Money Morning  (5/3/12)
"The ASCO Effect move often starts in April. But there's almost always an additional stretch in May during which oncology stocks experience near-vertical spikes in very short periods." More >

Catastrophically Successful Life Extension
Source: Patrick Cox, The Daily Reckoning  (4/30/12)
"Our lives will be profoundly affected by emerging biotechnologies that will push maximum healthy life spans up much faster and further than ever before." More >

ER Doctors Face Quandary on Painkillers
Source: New York Times, Catherine Saint Louis  (4/30/12)
"The frequent prescription of narcotics in emergency departments for dental pain has been quantified for the first time by research financed by the National Institutes of Health, bringing to light another way opioids get into circulation and contribute to the rampant abuse of painkillers in the United States." More >

Investing in Biotech Stocks: The Buyout Binge Continues
Source: Money Morning  (4/27/12)
"The biotechnology buyout deals just keep coming, meaning those investing in biotech stocks have scored some juicy profits, with more on the way." More >

Tap into Low-Risk Biotech and Specialty Pharma for Growth: Steven Palmer
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (4/26/12)
The somewhat obscure specialty biotechs and pharmas seek to add value by giving new life to older technologies and molecules. President and Chief Investment Officer Steven Palmer of AlphaNorth Asset Management embraces this strategy to generate exceptional returns while mitigating some of the risks inherent in drug development. In this exclusive interview with The Life Sciences Report, Palmer shares favorite life sciences names that could offer huge returns. More >

Pharma & Biotech Stock Outlook
Source: Zacks Investment Research  (4/26/12)
"With most of the big pharma companies already facing or likely to face patent challenges for their blockbuster products, the companies have been looking toward M&A and in-licensing activities to make up for the loss of revenues that will arise with key products losing patent exclusivity." More >

Amgen Kicks Off Week of Big Biotech Earnings
Source: Minyanville, Brett Chase  (4/24/12)
"It's imperative that each company meets sales and profit targets for the past quarter, but investors are particularly interested in updates on drugs being developed as they represent future growth." More >

AstraZeneca's Big Drug Deal
Source: Diallah Haidar, Wall St. Cheat Sheet  (4/23/12)
"The acquisition will give the company access to a number of promising drugs, including a developing treatment for gout, a condition that causes joint inflammation." More >

Select Biotech Winners in Advance of ASCO Conference
Source: Ian Cooper, Wealth Daily  (4/20/12)
"Any time a company is expected to present healthy data at ASCO, the speculation over FDA approval, buyout, and game-changing findings can jet stock prices going into the conference." More >

Electrifying Biotechnology: A Shot at Shocking Profits
Source: Patrick Cox, Penny Sleuth  (4/20/12)
"The discovery of reversible electroporation revolutionized biotechnology research. Cracking open a cell's pores allows researchers to get stuff into cells they weren't able to before." More >

Gilead Sciences' Hepatitis Drug in Spotlight
Source: Minyanville, Brett Chase  (4/20/12)
"Both medical and investor communities will scrutinize results from an experimental, next-generation treatment for the liver-destroying virus hepatitis C." More >

Will Illumina Reject Roche's Raised Takeover Bid?
Source: Aabha Rathee, Wall St. Cheat Sheet  (4/17/12)
"Shareholders of the San-Diego based Illumina seem to be collectively siding with their board, which has already rejected two bids from Roche." More >

Superior Biotechnology Leads to Superior Drugs
Source: Ray Blanco, Penny Sleuth  (4/17/12)
"Revolutions in our understanding of the genome and proteome are opening up new pathways toward vanquishing the cancer foe." More >

Junior Resource and Biotech Investing Share Profit Potential
Source: Alex Daley and Doug Hornig, Casey Research  (4/12/12)
Several Casey Research publications focus on the junior resource sector because this is a prime speculative market—one where individual investors can still turn a small amount of money into a fortune, provided they bring the proper tools to the table. Yet resource juniors by no means stand alone. Biotechnology is another good market for speculation. In fact, despite the very different science and economics at work, the biotech and junior resource sectors share some interesting traits. Investors will find a lot to like in both. More >

Vaccine Therapies Hold Promise for Investors: Stephen Dunn
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (4/12/12)
Developing vaccines to treat and/or prevent disease promises life-changing benefits for patients and unique opportunities for investors. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, LifeTech Capital Senior Managing Director and President Stephen Dunn discusses the roadblocks encountered by some developers of immune therapies and how other companies are working around those obstacles, producing investment opportunities in the process. More >

Playing the Immune System for Profit
Source: George S. Mack, The Life Sciences Report  (4/12/12)
I had an opportunity to pose some questions once again to Stephen Dunn who is president and senior managing director of research at LifeTech Capital, a division of Aurora Capital, which has a presence in growth hotbeds India and China. LifeTech is one of those boutique investment banks that researches small-cap stocks that need capital and attention. The firm specializes in biotech and medtech, and it really does get an opportunity to get inside little companies to know the people and to understand the science. Dunn gets to do things that he wouldn't get to do in a bulge-bracket banking environment, and after 25 years in his industry he has done nearly everything, including negotiations for intellectual property agreements to product deals, venture capital and mergers and acquisitions. . . More >

Weight Loss Stocks Race to End the Obesity Epidemic
Source: Diane Alter, Money Morning  (4/10/12)
"The economic burden of obesity is estimated to be 10% of total health care costs, with projections continuing to grow as the obesity epidemic spreads. For investors, that means weight loss stocks are poised to gain." More >

Breaking the Mold of Oncology Drug Development
Source: Seeking Alpha, Brian Nichols  (4/10/12)
"Looking at all oncology products on the market, it is striking to note how each targets a single factor in the complex processes that control tumor growth and invasion. It is almost like attempting to stop traffic in a city by blocking a single avenue: It only slows down traffic but doesn't stop it completely." More >