BMO Capital analyst Joanne Wuensch says she’s “defending” shares of Johnson & Johnson on today’s selloff.
Friday, December 14, 2018
J&J: Reuters story ‘false’
“The Reuters article is one-sided, false, and inflammatory,” says the company. “Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ -9.4%) baby powder is safe and asbestos-free.”
J&J notes studies of more than 100K people show talc doesn’t cause cancer or asbestos-related disease.
Source: Press Release
Previously: Johnson & Johnson down 4% on reports of prior knowledge of asbestos in baby powder (Dec. 14)
60 Minutes to air feature on opiod fight this Sunday
Mike Moore, the lawyer governor-elect of Ohio Mike DeWine hired to sue opioid companies for the overdose deaths of Ohio residents, has been interviewed by 60 Minutes for a feature that will be broadcast on Sunday, December 16, the newsmagazine has teased. Moore, who orchestrated the multibillion-dollar tobacco settlement in 1998, believes “the evidence in the data could result in a $100 billion verdict that could bankrupt the drug companies if the case ever goes to trial,” according to 60 Minutes’ preview. Endo (ENDP) is seeking a settlement to end Opana lawsuits that would cap its exposure and pull it out of talks with other opiod drugmakers and distributors who are seeking an industrywide settlement, Bloomberg previously reported in September. State attorneys general and private lawyers representing cities and counties contend Endo, Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), McKesson (MCK) and other opioid makers and distributors downplayed opiods’ health risks and oversold their benefits, Bloomberg has noted.
https://thefly.com/landingPageNews.php?id=2837513
‘Are we going to crash?’
That is the question I’ve been hearing a lot lately. I don’t hear anyone talking about stocks running to new all-time highs. I do hear about all the market woes, from tariffs and trade wars to discord in Europe to political turmoil in the U.S. My job, as a trader and as an investor, is to entertain a variety of scenarios based upon the data in front of me. As much as possible, I want to stay open minded to what others are not looking at. Very often that is where an edge can be found.
For example, on September 24th my blog posthighlighted caution signals for the overall market. A variety of supply/demand flow measures had turned decidedly negative. We’ve seen weakness in stocks overall since that time. Reports indicaterecord amounts of cash being taken out of the market, with 49% of surveyed investors expecting a market decline over the next six months. That is the highest percentage since 2013.
And, yet, with all the selling, all the negative news, and all the bearishness, we have merely roundtripped the early 2018 performance.
This chart shows the ES futures from May of 2017 to the present. Each data point represents 50,000 contracts traded. You can see that the entire bear period to date has, so far, been a relatively flat correction on a large time scale. That is not so unlike the 1994 market, which dipped in the first and last quarters of the year, forming a range. The upside break of that range lasted six years.
Thus far, the flow and breadth measures that I track are not telling me that the selling has dried up. I need that confirmation before more seriously entertaining the upside. But I’m open to both sides of the market and am monitoring day over day strength versus weakness to handicap the odds of a big picture break from the longer-term range. The key is stepping back and seeing 2018 as a range.
Innovate Bio gains
Nano cap Innovate Biopharmaceuticals (INNT +22.8%) bucks the broad market selloff on 65% higher volume. Shares are still down ~90%, however, since July.
Last week, it announced a collaboration with Massachusetts General Hospital aimed at understanding how certain toxins in the intestines may cause liver disease via breaching the gut vascular barrier via ethanol-induced disruption. The company expects the research to enhance its knowledge of how agents like larazotide may prevent the “leaky” barrier from worsening, thereby providing a potential treatment benefit in patients with liver disorders like NASH.
On the working capital front, at the end of September it had $8.1M in cash and equivalents while operations consumed $12.8M during the first three quarters of the year.
In late October, it inked agreements with H.C. Wainwright and Ladenburg Thalmann for the at-the-market sale of up to $40M of common stock.
Next Monday, December 17, management will host an investor update during which it will review its capital plan for its celiac disease clinical program and its NASH development strategy.
Pfizer Receives Positive CHMP Opinion for Oncology Biosimilar
ZIRABEV™ (bevacizumab), a potential biosimilar to Avastin®* (bevacizumab), is Pfizer’s second therapeutic oncology biosimilar to receive a positive CHMP opinion in Europe in 2018
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) today announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has adopted a positive opinion, recommending marketing authorization for ZIRABEV™ (bevacizumab), a potential biosimilar to Avastin (bevacizumab).1 ZIRABEV is a monoclonal antibody for the treatment of metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum, metastatic breast cancer, unresectable advanced, metastatic or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), advanced and/or metastatic renal cell cancer and persistent, recurrent or metastatic carcinoma of the cervix.2
“If approved, ZIRABEV has the potential to expand access to this life-changing biologic cancer therapy for appropriate patients and healthcare professionals across Europe,” said Joe McClellan, Vice President, Biosimilars Development at Pfizer. “Today’s positive CHMP opinion underscores Pfizer’s strong heritage in oncology and its ongoing commitment to bringing high-quality biosimilars to market, providing additional options for people living with certain cancers.”
Takeda: Positive CHMP Opinion for ADCETRIS for Hodgkin Lymphoma
– If Authorized in Europe, ADCETRIS in Combination with AVD (Adriamycin, Vinblastine and Dacarbazine) Will Be the First New Treatment Regimen Available for Adult Patients with Previously Untreated CD30+ Stage IV Hodgkin Lymphoma in Decades –
– Opinion Based on Positive Phase 3 ECHELON-1 Study Results, Which Demonstrated ADCETRIS Combination Improved Outcomes and Reduced the Need for Additional Treatment in Adult Patients Versus ABVD (Adriamycin, Bleomycin, Vinblastine and Dacarbazine), a Current Standard of Care –
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