Encompass Health will build its first inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Iowa. The 40-bed, freestanding hospital will be located in Coralville and is expected to begin serving patients in 2Q20. Construction is expected to begin in spring 2019, and the project will represent an investment of approximately $27M.
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Illumina price target lowered to $365 from $380 at Leerink
Leerink analyst Puneet Souda lowered his price target for Illumina to $365 from $380 to reflect its lowered growth guide. The analyst reiterates an Outperform rating on the stock as he believes lower sequencing costs and competition among its customers continue to drive NovaSeq and its broader product upgrade cycle.
Novus advances OP0201 development program across several trials
Novus Therapeutics provided updates on several ongoing and planned clinical trials with OP0201, the company’s lead product candidate being developed for otitis media. “We have made good progress with the OP0201 development program over the past few months and we are looking forward to reporting data from four clinical trials this year,” said Gregory Flesher, CEO of Novus Therapeutics. “We initiated screening for study C-001, a single-dose phase 1 safety and pharmacodynamic effects study. We completed the first dose cohort of study C-002, the ongoing 14-day phase 1 adult safety and tolerability study, and have initiated screening for the second higher dose cohort. We expect data from these two clinical trials to be available in the second calendar quarter of 2019. In addition, we recently completed enrollment of study C-004, the single-dose phase 1 safety and exploration of efficacy study in adults with acute otitis media. Given the rapid enrollment of study C-004, we now expect to have data by the end of the first calendar quarter of 2019. Finally, we are pleased to announce the addition of study C-006, an exploratory phase 2a placebo-controlled study in infants and children with acute otitis media. This trial replaces the previously announced phase 1 open-label study in children with otitis media with effusion. This new phase 2a study is designed to explore multiple endpoints and help the company design larger phase 2 studies in patients. We expect enrollment of this trial to begin in the coming weeks, with data available in the second half of 2019,” concluded Flesher.
CVS, Walgreens test teeth straightening, cleaning in some stores
CVS (CVS) and Walgreens (WBA) are testing health services like teeth cleaning and straightening in some of its stores, CNBC reports. According to the report, SmileDirectClub has opened six locations inside CVS stores to fit people’s teeth for invisible aligners, while Walgreens opened an Aspen Dental office in one of its Florida stores in December.
Ekso Bionics announces $100M JV to develop ekoskeleton market in Asia
Ekso Bionics Holdings announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Ekso Bionics, Inc., has entered into an agreement with Zhejiang Youchuang Venture Capital Investment Co. and another partner to establish a joint venture designed to develop and serve the exoskeleton market in China and other Asian markets and to create a global exoskeleton manufacturing center. The joint venture will develop, sell and support exoskeleton products into China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia, and will be capitalized at greater than $100M over its term. In addition to ZYVC, the other joint venture partner is Zhejiang Silicon Paradise Asset Management Group. Ekso Bionics will license its manufacturing technology and contribute its relevant Chinese patent rights to the joint venture in exchange for a 20% ownership position, with the other partners committing over $90M in cash. As part of the agreement, subject to certain conditions, Ekso Bionics will receive royalties on the joint venture’s medical and industrial product sales in China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore. ZYVC and its related parties will also make an equity investment of $10M in Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc., of which $5M is being invested now and the remaining $5M will be invested after the joint venture begins shipping products. A portion of the joint venture capital will be used to construct a manufacturing facility in Zhejiang, one of the most developed and enterprising regions in China with the highest concentration of privately owned businesses in the country.
https://thefly.com/landingPageNews.php?id=2855955
https://thefly.com/landingPageNews.php?id=2855955
HCA Healthcare price target raised to $150 from $142 at Oppenheimer
Oppenheimer analyst Michael raised his price target for HCA Healthcare to $150 from $142 following quarterly results. The analyst reiterates an Outperform rating on the shares.
https://thefly.com/landingPageNews.php?id=2855957
https://thefly.com/landingPageNews.php?id=2855957
JMP upgrades Intercept to Outperform on ‘good shot’ of upcoming trial success
JMP Securities analyst Liisa Bayko upgraded Intercept to Outperform from Market Perform as she thinks the REGENERATE trial, which will be reading out this quarter, has “a good shot” to hit on the fibrosis endpoint. REGENERATE would technically be considered a success if obeticholic acid hits either primary endpoint, but she thinks for “OCA” to be a commercial success the trial needs to hit on the fibrosis endpoint, Bayko tells investors. While she maintains a 60% probability of success view of the trial, she could see Intercept share trading above $200 with positive fibrosis data to support regulatory submissions, the analyst added. However, she could see downside to about $75 per share for the stock on a miss. Bayko has a $175 price target on Intercept shares.
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