Onyx Pharmaceuticals (ONXX) is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for improving the lives of people with cancer and other serious diseases. The company is focused on developing novel medicines that target key molecular pathways.

I see at least 3 reasons to buy the company:

1. Promising pipeline

Nexavar

The company's first commercially available product, Nexavar, is approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, for the treatment of patients with unresectable liver cancer and advanced kidney cancer.

Onyx Pharmaceuticals and Bayer (BAYZF.PK) are commercializing Nexavar for the treatment of patients with unresectable liver cancer and advanced kidney cancer. Nexavar was approved for the treatment of patients with advanced kidney cancer by the FDA in December 2005. It was approved by the European Union in July 2006 for the treatment of patients with advanced kidney cancer who have failed prior

On May 7, 2012, CNBC published a brief article, "US Supreme Court Ruling Key to Cigna Trade". In June, the Supreme Court will make a ruling on the constitutionally of the Affordable Health Care Act. The Supreme Court is divided 5-4, with five of the justices appointed by Republicans, and four appointed by the Democrats. This 5-4 Supreme Court margin could play a big difference in the legalities in the Affordable Health Care Act and this could have an effect on CIGNA Corporation's (CI) stock price.

Cigna can be described as a holding company that specializes in managing health plans for companies that self-insure. Cigna is broken up into five major business segments that are Health Care, Disability and Life, International, Run-off Reinsurance and Other Operations. About two-thirds of Cigna's revenue comes from the Health Care Segment that entails HMOs PPOs, dental and prescription drug plans.

Over the last couple

By Jonathan Yates

In a recent Forbes column talking about investment classics - starting with books and ending with stocks, money manager Ken Fisher lauded Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA) along with other promising stocks such as Mattel (MAT) and Applied Materials (AMAT).

There is no denying the appeal of Israel-based Teva to emerging market growth, value and income investors.

According to Fisher, Teva is now "the biggest generic drug maker, spanning 60 nations with 17 R&D centers. With low cost and strong emerging markets presence, expect low double-digit sales growth. It's cheap at 14 times earnings with a 2.3% dividend yield."

Demographics are also on the side of Teva. As the consumer class in emerging markets expands, the demand for generic drugs will increase dramatically.

The dividend of Teva stock, now around 2.50%, should appeal to emerging market income investors given the average yield for a stock on the S&P 500

<< Return to Part 2

This is a continuation of my previous article on biotechnology stocks to watch ahead of ASCO 2012. In this article, I cover the third set of stocks that are presenting at ASCO 2012. Biotech stocks are high risk/reward stocks, and therefore considerable analysis is required before trading. Use this list as a potential starting point for your analysis.

1. Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp (SNTA): Synta Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of small molecule drug candidates for treating severe medical conditions, including cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases. Synta has a unique chemical compound library, an integrated discovery engine, and a diverse pipeline of clinical- and preclinical-stage drug candidates with distinct mechanisms of action and novel chemical structures.

Synta Pharmaceuticals is scheduled to present at the 2012 American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting on the following topics:

• The GALAXY

With baby boomers being one of the biggest population bubbles, medical suppliers can be a healthy addition to a portfolio. Here are five medical supply companies that are trading below their normal historical P/E ratios and in line with or slightly below their estimated growth rates. Consequently, they represent an opportunity for above-average growth and yield.

Five Medical Suppliers Portfolio Review

The following table summarizes five medical suppliers that appear to be attractively valued, and lists them in order of dividend yield highest to lowest. From left to right, the table shows the company's stock symbol and name. Next, two valuation metrics are listed side by side, the current P/E ratio followed by the historical normal P/E ratio for perspective. Then the estimated EPS growth, 15-year historical EPS growth and the five-year estimated annual total return providing a perspective of the past vs. the future growth potential of each company.

Last month, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) made an offer to Human Genome Sciences (HGSI) in a buyout of the company for $13 a share. The stock price of HGSI nearly doubled on the news.

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HGSI management does not believe the offer values the company properly. I have to disagree with the company's management. I believe the company expects they can get an offer between $20 - $30 per share since the stock was trading around that price just last year. What Human Genome's management fails to see is that Benlysta was not that big of a success as initially planned.

HGSI's management should understand that since GSK was a partner for the drug, that it would be the most viable solution for the company to be acquired by them. Otherwise, there are not many other suitors that could say the same.

I urge shareholders to liquidate their positions in

SPDR Health Care Select Sector (XLV) has been showing signs of an uptrend as companies within the index have dividend yields and decent valuations. The pending Supreme Court healthcare reform decision will eventually steer the healthcare sector.

"Year to date through May 18, XLV was u 4.6%. This was near the 4.3% increase in the health care sector of the S&P 500 index, and ahead of the 3.0% gain for the S&P 500 Index. Interestingly, six of the 10 sub-industries in the sector were ahead of the broader benchmark's return, led by Healthcare supplies and Biotechnology, but this was partially offset by the larger Pharmaceuticals sub-industry, which was up only 0.9%," Todd Rosenbluth, S&P Capital IQ ETF Analyst wrote in a recent MarketScope Advisor note.

The ETF XLV has stakes in some of the biggest names in health care: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Pfizer (PFE), Abbot Laboratories (ABT) and Merck

Going into a four-day weekend many traders do not like to hold stocks. Personally, I am 50/50 on this one as the extra day often times can help when faced with a choppy overall market that we are in now. Below, I list a few stocks I think will have nice gains next week, provided we have a stable market, and the technicals indicate to me we should at least for next week.

Antares Pharma (AIS)

Antares engages in the development and marketing of self-injection pharmaceutical products and technologies, and topical gel-based products.

What to watch for:

The trading pattern today of split .5's normally indicates quiet short covering associated with the so called "Market Makers"(MM'S). Just about every time I see this type of trading activity with Antares, a large upside move occurs within three trading sessions. I also expect a near term update on the company's much talked

Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (RDY), India's second-largest pharmaceutical company, recently reported a fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 performance that beat expectations on revenues but missed estimates on earnings.

Revenues for the full year came in at $1.9 billion, a strong growth of 20 percent over the previous year. Revenues for the quarter, ending March 21, reached $522 million, an increase of 32 percent year over year. The company disappointed investors with a meager 2.7 percent rise in fourth-quarter earnings, but mostly because of a one-time charge.

Revenues from the company's Global Generics segment came in at $361 million for the quarter, an increase of 30 percent YoY, largely driven by demand in the U.S. and Russia.

Gross margins declined, as some drugs experienced price erosion. The company reduced its net debt by USD154 million to USD276 million.

Dr. Reddy's management said that it expected about USD2.5 billion in sales this year, noting

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) seems to be paying out a lot more money than it is bringing in these days. Although some of these payouts could be considered investments in future revenue, the company might be getting off balance, which could spell disaster for investors. Additionally, with doctors and patients outraged over drug scandals like the recent discovery of high levels of chromium in certain capsules, consumption could decline, leaving Johnson & Johnson and others with empty pockets. Unless the company can find a way to seriously cut down on costs, I expect to see profits down in the next few weeks, and this is one stock that can't really afford any more losses.

Although the company is accused of using old leather shoes to produce industrial gelatin for its capsules, the impact could spread to all manufacturers. In this way, Johnson & Johnson's already tarnished reputation could take another

The pharmaceuticals industry is just like the food and beverage industry in terms of sensitivity. This is because it produces products for human consumption, which makes it the main source of income. Abbott Laboratories (ABT) is one major beneficiary of this kind of income and so is a victim of the dangers associated with the business. In November 2011, a law suit was filed against the company with regard to the Depakote drug, which is viewed to have caused various side effects. In February, the drug was in the mix again as yet a new law suit was filed with relation to its effects on human consumption. The pharmaceuticals industry is quite a lucrative one in the U.S as you will learn through several press releases from various news media. Some claim that sales are recorded to the tune of $300 billion annually, a figure that should entice investors to

Catalyst trades in the biopharma sector can provide big profits if traded correctly. Some traders and investors who enjoy bringing more risk into play often times will hold through the catalyst event. While this does bring a lot more risk into play, the reward from engaging in this can be a massive one.

The bio-pharma companies listed below have near-term catalyst events associated with them. More often than not, these stocks see nice run-ups before the actual catalyst event takes place. Often times people in 'the know' begin to take aggressive positions in these stocks, which alerts more savvy traders to follow suite.

Traders and investors might also consider using option trading to hedge or lever their positions accordingly.

Progenics Pharmaceuticals (PGNX) 5/24/12 pps: $8.11. Market cap: $274.61M.

Progenics engages in the development and commercialization of therapeutic products to treat the unmet medical needs of patients with debilitating conditions and

In a recent catalyst stock pick article, I wrote about a company named Progenics Pharma (PGNX) which trades for around $8.10 a share with a $274.61M market cap.

This company is located in Tarrytown, NY and develops products for patients with debilitating conditions and life-threatening diseases in the U.S. and internationally. I will focus on two of the drugs this company offers in completely different stages in the developmental pipeline.

The first drug I want to talk about is already developed and marketed for the treatment of opioid induced constipation (OIC) in patients with advanced illnesses, such as cancer. It is called Relistor and is the only prescription medicine approved in the United States to treat this form of constipation. Relistor subcutaneous injection is now approved in the U.S. and over 50 other countries around the world. In the U.S., Relistor is marketed by their commercial partner Salix Pharma (SLXP),

Most people would not buy a generic brand painkiller over a trusted brand like Advil, typically because of the idea that generic brands do not work as well as name brands. It is this idea that leads me to believe that Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) may be safe from the "patent cliff" that so many pharmaceutical companies are currently dealing with. Pfizer is also making enormous moves toward directions that will benefit the company and its stock in the future.

The "patent cliff" is a term used to describe the current phenomenon many pharmaceutical companies are dealing with, expired drug patents. These patents protected the companies' major branded drugs from being replicated by other companies and sold in generic versions for cheaper. With the patents expiring, generic brand drugs are being made and sold, hurting sales of the original name-brand drugs. Watson Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:WPI) released its long-awaited generic version of Pfizer's top-selling

Myrexis (MYRX) is an early-stage pharmaceutical company that focuses on the development of anti-cancer drugs whose shares are trading -41.00 % from their 52-week high ($ 4.22).

The Salt Lake City, Utah based firm currently has four projects in their product pipeline, only one of which has entered clinical trials thus far (the compound MPC-3100). In February, Myrexis announced the suspension of its pre-clinical and clinical programs to make room for a new acquisition-based strategy to enhance shareholder value.

Despite the change in direction, the stock has been suffering from poor market conditions and remains depressed from the announcement of a change in management. Richard Brewer was appointed the new CEO, replacing Robert Lollini as announced on May 11th 2012. Brewer is an industry veteran who has a long track record of developing successful strategies at better known companies like Roche (RHHBY.PK) and Dendreon (DNDN). Despite some small problems from

Yesterday I published an interview that took place between me and one of the leading medical doctors in the treatment of breast cancer, Dr. George Peoples. The interview looked at the current state of breast cancer treatments along with his view on the clinical trials of NeuVax. The only problem was that the interview was conducted last week, therefore not answering a lot of the questions that investors have been asking as of late.

As a physician, Dr. Peoples deals with the scientific aspect of NeuVax. As for the logistics and final decisions of the trials, Dr. Mark Ahn, Galena Biopharma's (GALE) CEO, is the best person to talk to regarding any investor concerns. Therefore, I decided to take it upon myself to contact the company's CEO and although he only had five minutes of free time, he was forthcoming about the questions that I asked. The goal was to

Interested in the high growth prospects of the biotech industry? For a closer look at some interesting biotech stocks, we ran a screen.

We began by screening the biotech industry for stocks with strong liquidity, with current ratios above 3. The current ratio is current assets/current liabilities, so ratios above 3 indicate the company has at least 3 times the liquid assets to cover their short-term liabilities.

We then screened these names for those with the confidence of their company insiders, such as members of the board and upper management, with significant net insider purchases over the last six months representing at least 2% of share float. Since most companies only have a handful of company insiders, net insider purchases representing 2% of share float is a big show of confidence in their employer's prospects.

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Do you think these stocks are poised to move higher? Use this

Without a doubt, Dendreon (DNDN) is one of the most controversial stocks in the market today. It seems that not a day goes by without a fierce debate over Provenge, its efficacy, and its future place in the prostate cancer market.

Over the past year, Dendreon has suffered mightily, with the stock falling almost 82% as Provenge forecasts were cut and investors and analysts question the drug's role in treating prostate cancer going forward.

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But with a new CEO, John Johnson (appointed in February) and a turnaround plan in motion, could things finally be looking up for Dendreon? The market will soon be able to get a plethora of new information regarding Provenge and its place in the prostate cancer market. We believe that options can be used to substantially minimize the risk of investing in Dendreon, and outline our trade below. But first, an overview of

Interested in biotechnology companies? Do you prefer companies with high liquidity? Do you prefer investing in stocks that analysts have weighed in on? We ran a screen you might find helpful.

The Current ratio is a liquidity ratio used to determine a company's financial health. The metric illustrates how easily a firm can pay back its short obligations all at once through current assets. A company that has a Current ratio of one or less is generally a liquidity red flag. Now this doesn't mean the company will go bankrupt tomorrow, but it also doesn't bode well for the company, and may indicate that it could have an issue paying back upcoming obligations.

The Quick ratio measures a company's ability to use its cash or assets to extinguish its current liabilities immediately. Quick assets include assets that presumably can be converted to cash at close to their book values. A

This monthly report series began applying dog dividend methodology to each of eight major market sectors in December. The sectors were, in alphabetical order: basic materials; consumer goods; financial; healthcare; industrial goods; services; technology; utilities.

A ninth sector, conglomerates, according to Yahoo Finance, contained just eight firms, five of which paid dividends. The editorial decision was not to apply dogs of the index metrics a sector containing fewer than ten dividend paying equities.

Dogs of the Index Metrics Selected Ten Top Healthcare Stocks by Yield

Two key metrics determined the yields that ranked these sector dog stocks: (1) stock price; (2) annual dividend. Dividing the annual dividend by the price of the stock declared the percentage yield by which each dog stock was ranked.

Historically dividend dog investors utilized this ranking system to select portfolios of five or ten stocks in any one index, sector, or survey to trade. They