Michael Becker

Developments for Parkinson's Disease Ignite Investor Enthusiasm

A comprehensive review of the Parkinson's disease therapeutic landscape is beyond the scope of our article. Accordingly, we focused only on those companies with "new" information following our August article. Note that the company you referenced did not report any information regarding its Parkinson's program during this period. Further, the title of our article is "Developments for Parkinson's Disease Ignite Investor Enthusiasm," and based on the recent price action there is apparently little investor enthusiasm for the company you referenced. Lastly, when you begin a message with incorrect grammar [eg, "why you don't mentioned"], it is difficult to take your "illiterate bushman" comment seriously.


On Nov 17 03:51 PM Vitautas wrote:

> Mr. Becker! Why you don't mentioned Newron Pharma when you talk about
> drugs against PD? They have an adavanced product with good results!
> Because you don't know them? Because their product is worthless?
> Because you think everyone outside the U.S. is an illiterate bushman?

Developments for Parkinson's Disease Ignite Investor Enthusiasm

Thank you. Unfortunately, we did not perform the currency translation - it was done by SA.


On Nov 17 01:55 PM maxiedog wrote:

> Check your UK pence to USD calculation. 10p is £0.1 not £1.

Update: 10.9.09

Justin,

Regarding any potential conflicts, I refer you to SA's seven conditions of Gold Standard Certification at: seekingalpha.com/page/...

In particular, read section "3. Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest"
the fact that "Authors agree to disclose any material relationships with companies whose stocks they write about or parties that stand to gain in any way from the viewpoint they are outlining."

As I have stated, I hold no such positions...


On Oct 13 12:53 AM Justin M. Hall wrote:

> I have tried to post something several times this evening, but to
> no avail.
>
> I'm floored as to why the sentiment is so negaitve about Zevalin.
> You may be right. To be fair, would you please disclose what companies
> you receive your income from Mr. Becker?
>
> Since I can no longer post anything at this blog, I am at a loss.
>
>
> Justin

Update: 10.9.09

I would not count on near-term Zevalin sales as driving the share price higher. Q2 '09 sales of $3.3 million from Zevalin might have been up 25% over Q1 '09, but that translates into growth from $2.6 million to $3.3 million, or an increase of a mere $700,000. More importantly, for 2006, Biogen Idec reported $16.4 million in U.S. Zevalin sales, which translates into average quarterly sales of $4.1 million - so no matter how you slice it, quarterly Zevalin sales today are lower than back in 2006. Lastly, an October 12, 2009, article by Adam Feuerstein reports that Amar Singh, Spectrum's chief commercial officer, says it will take three or four months before Spectrum has a clear view on how Zevalin sales are progressing.

Bayer's Bold New Bet Fails to Rain on Spectrum Pharma

Actually, what is making news (and hence, the topic of the article) is that Bayer AG (BAYRY.PK) entered into an $800 million deal with Algeta ASA (OSE: ALGETA) for its "first-in-class" alpha-pharmaceutical, Alpharadin [eg, Bayer's bold new bet]. The deal was announced on September 3, which is when our article first published on our blog site. Certainly not as intriguing as all of the unfounded conspiracy theories being advanced in this comment thread, but factually accurate nonetheless.

On Sep 06 05:07 PM User 482664 wrote:

> article has nothing to do with zevalin being approved for another
> indication ,which is what is making news
> ,its about bayer did not buy sppi
> y you did not write about all these drawbacks of zevakin before
>
> y did u choose the day it got approved to trash it
> because u have some shorties u want to help
> u should be ashamed of urself

Bayer's Bold New Bet Fails to Rain on Spectrum Pharma

Interesting point microbiologician, and for those not familiar:

* * *
Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ONXX) announced that it has filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California asserting its rights to a Phase 2 anti-cancer compound discovered during joint research between Onyx and Bayer.

In its complaint, Onyx seeks a declaration that fluoro-sorafenib is a jointly-owned collaboration compound under the Bayer/Onyx collaboration agreement, together with other remedies. The defendants in the complaint are Bayer Corporation and Bayer A.G. Onyx affirmed that it continues to collaborate with Bayer in the development and commercialization of Nexavar.

Onyx was recently advised that the compound, fluoro-sorafenib, is a variant of Nexavar(R) (sorafenib) tablets and has the same chemical structure as Nexavar, except that a single fluorine atom has been substituted for a hydrogen atom. The new molecule had been identified in 1998 during the research collaboration period by the companies' joint research teams. Discussions with Bayer regarding Onyx's rights to fluoro-sorafenib under the companies' 1994 collaboration agreement were not productive.
* * *


On Sep 04 01:34 PM microbiologician wrote:

> I vote for Bayer trying to go around their partners. Witness what
> they did with fluoro-nexavar and Onyx.

Bayer's Bold New Bet Fails to Rain on Spectrum Pharma

I recommend reading SA's seven conditions of Gold Standard Certification at: seekingalpha.com/page/...

In particular, the fact that "authors agree to disclose the existence at the time of writing of a long or short position (including stocks, options or other instruments) in any stock mentioned in an article."

As I stated, I hold no positions...


On Sep 04 11:38 AM herbert hoover wrote:

> Caution: This article contains a whole bunch of bullshit.
>
> SA should be ashamed of themselves for publishing this kind of tripe
> that is merely meant to aid someone's short position

Three Recent Biotech Activist Wins by Carl Icahn

The topic of this article relates to shareholder activism through Icahn's top biotech holdings, which do not include the company you reference.


On Sep 01 09:14 AM jimmy Turano wrote:

> Good Article! I am not surprised at all that 'MRNA' didn't make the
> list. In fact in 2 years I have never seen any coverage on 'MRNA'
>
> on seeking alpha at all. Why? Especially puzzling, is in two years
> and up to 4 weeks ago, analysts still have high targeted stock prices.
>
> Last target price was $4.00?. Again why? Investors some times are
> swayed by these analysts but must clearly understand that they follow
> the stock, therefore they seem to always show a bright side of great
> potential appreciation. If you check back since early 2007, they
> all have been wrong while the stock price has decreased in value.
> I bring this up, because shareholders are still being mislead today
> in the market. And if you reacted to the last target price of $4.00,
> just 4 weeks ago, you have seen once again the stock price go down.
> Nobody ever investigates these analysts.
> They get paid and release new target prices that are not warranted.
>
> Since it goes under the radar, I have brought it to light on seeking
> alpha for three straight years. Someone must have a voice or the
> continuing misinformation is fed to shareholders or potential shareholders
> who think they can get rich overnight.
> I wish to thank SEEKINGALPHA for affording me the opportunity
> to be heard on their site. September 1, 2009, 'MRNA' is on a weak
> downtrend and unless they announce a major partnership in the coming
> days, or a Reverse split, I only see a decreasing stock price regardless
> what analysts state in their news releases.
> This is my opinion.

Genzyme: Robust Growth Prospects at Clearance Prices

FYI, it was reported today by Reuters that Goldman Sachs added Genzyme (GENZ) to its Americas conviction sell list; stated manufacturing setbacks may impair long-term growth, Cerezyme shortage may be worse than expected. Link: www.reuters.com/articl...

Genzyme's Manufacturing Disruption Highlights Investment Opportunities

The numerous recent lawsuits, positive data and prospects for accelerated approval of Shire's (SHPGY) competitive product, continued manufacturing woes, and the spate of analyst downgrades provide more support for the fresh 52-week low in Genzyme (GENZ) versus a bullish stance on the company at this juncture.


On Jul 21 01:23 AM Justin M. Hall wrote:

> Mike:
>
> I appreciate the article and agree with the comment above.
>
> At $53.83, GENZ looks like a good buy. Investors might consider a
> long-term position here as GENZ has excellent growth prospects. I
> am a fan of the company and a good friend from college is in mgt.
>
>
> Great work!
>
>
> Justin M. Hall
>
> Disclosure: I do not own any positions in either GENZ or any of the
> stocks mentioned in the ariticle.
>

Biotech ETFs Get Big Boost from HGSI

Also of interest in view of the Human Genome (HGSI) news is the following Reuters story regarding smallcap biotech - "Investors eye small biotech after Human Genome win" that can be found at link: tinyurl.com/mg2jhd

Genzyme's Manufacturing Disruption Highlights Investment Opportunities

Shailesh,

Thank you for the kind words. Here are the links:

Blog: mdbpartners.wordpress.com/
Tweeter: twitter.com/MDBpartners


On Jul 20 10:04 AM Shailesh Maingi wrote:

> Michael, I'm very impressed with your article...very well written
> and informative. Thanks for taking the time to write this. Are you
> on Twitter? Also, tried to click on your blog link but there seemed
> to be an error. Thanks again!

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals: Temporary Setback

The PDUFA date of July 2 for the Zevalin sBLA came and went without any word from the company until a mid-Sunday (July 5) press release announcing the receipt of a complete response letter from FDA requesting data from the FIT study to validate a subset of the sBLA. The company stated in the PR that it will provide all data requested to FDA as part of a formal response by Wednesday, July 8 and that the FDA’s request does not involve new clinical studies or new data analyses. The company’s stock was weak as the PDUFA date came and went in addition to the announcement of a $21 million registered direct offering priced at $7.1525 (with 50% warrant coverage) that is expected to be consummated no later than July 6, 2009, subject to customary closing conditions. Despite the stock weakness and regulatory delay, there hasn't been any update from the company as to whether or not the financing closing will proceed as planned. However, significantly improved sales of Zevalin in future quarters will be much more important to Spectrum Pharmaceuticals than near-term approval of the sBLA.

Can Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Benefit from FDA Action on Zevalin?

The PDUFA date of July 2 for the Zevalin sBLA came and went without any word from the company until a mid-Sunday (July 5) press release annoucning the receipt of a complete response letter from FDA requesting data from the FIT study to validate a subset of the sBLA. The company stated in the PR that it will provide all data requested to FDA as part of a formal response by Wednesday, July 8 and that the FDA's request does not involve new clinical studies or new data analyses. The company's stock was weak as the PDUFA date came and went in addition to the announcement of a $21 million registered direct offering priced at $7.1525 (with 50% warrant coverage) that is expected to be consummated no later than July 6, 2009, subject to customary closing conditions. In view of the stock weakness and regulatory delay, it is not clear whether or not the financing will proceed as planned. As stated, however, significantly improved sales of Zevalin in future quarters will be much more important to Spectrum Pharmaceuticals than near-term approval of the sBLA.

Can Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Benefit from FDA Action on Zevalin?

For five years, Zevalin has been approved for the treatment of patients with “relapsed” or “refractory” NHL, which includes Rituxan (rituximab) failures. The efficacy/safety data in this setting are compelling and this is a significant patient population, yet Zevalin did a mere $11.4 million in sales for 2008. And if Zevalin cannot penetrate the market for Rituxan failures, I certainly don't see the rationale for Zevalin replacing Rituxan. Further, the positive first line consolidation therapy data were presented at the ASH annual meeting back in December 2007 and the EU approved this indication more than a year ago. So again, significant quarterly growth with Zevalin will be the best metric for investors going forward. It isn't a question of whether or not Zevalin works, it is a matter of getting medical oncologists to embrace radiopharmaceuticals - and that has been tough for even big pharma as evidenced by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) with Bexxar.




On Jul 01 05:53 AM tobyhubner wrote:

> One of my best friends had NHL, it was a death sentence then, and
> he was literally cured by Rituxin. So I have seen these drugs work
> wonders. If Zevalin works as well as they say it does, and even better
> and/or as an alternative to Rituxin, then the value to SPPI and patients
> is...enormous. For once there is a stock analysis that finally makes
> some sense. I agree with Hall's articles that SPPI could go through
> the roof.