Best Biotech Stocks To Buy For 2019

tags:BIIB,AMGN,ALNY,ARQL, What happened

After reporting first-quarter results, shares of Sarepta Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SRPT), a commercial-stage biotech focused on rare diseases, jumped 14% as of 3:40 p.m. EDT Friday.

So what

Here's a review of the key numbers from the first quarter:

Revenue jumped 296% to $64.6 million. The jump was led by increasing sales of the company's Duchenne muscular dystrophy drug Exondys 51. That was a hair behind the $64.8 million that Wall Street was projecting. Non-GAAP Net loss was $17.9 million, or $0.28 per share. That was less than the $0.32 loss that analysts had expected.

Looking beyond the financial statements, Sarepta also recently signed an exclusive partnership deal with Myonexus Therapeutics. The move expands the company's pipeline from 16 programs to 21.

Image source: Getty Images.

Best Biotech Stocks To Buy For 2019: Biogen Idec Inc(BIIB)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Traders bought shares of Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB) on weakness during trading on Tuesday. $119.44 million flowed into the stock on the tick-up and $86.88 million flowed out of the stock on the tick-down, for a money net flow of $32.56 million into the stock. Of all companies tracked, Biogen had the 26th highest net in-flow for the day. Biogen traded down ($7.15) for the day and closed at $345.41

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB) by 130.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,000 shares during the quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB’s holdings in Biogen were worth $10,599,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

• [By George Budwell]

  Not surprisingly, biotech titans Celgene (NASDAQ:CELG) and Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) are among the leaders in this ongoing biopharma revolution. So, with that theme in mind, let's attempt to gauge which of these top biotechs is the more attractive long-term buy for investors right now.

Best Biotech Stocks To Buy For 2019: Amgen Inc.(AMGN)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) were named in an August 3 Merrill Lynch report in which the firm rebalanced its income portfolio. It increased its portfolio position in Merck to 3.0% from 2.0% and in Pfizer to 3.0% from 2.5%. AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) and Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) were also kept in the portfolio, with weights of 1.5% and 2.0%, respectively.

• [By ]

  This week we get our first look at quarterly numbers from major drug and biotech giants such as AbbVie (ABBV)  , Amgen (AMGN)  , Biogen (BIIB) , Biomarin Pharmaceuticals (BMRN)  and Action Alerts PLUS holding Eli Lilly (LLY) , which all provide the market a glimpse of how the first quarter was for the industry over the next few days," according to Real Money Pro columnist Bret Jensen.

• [By Keith Speights]

  It's a big drugmaker with a blockbuster immunology drug as its top-selling product. It pays an attractive dividend. And it faces some uncertainties. This description fits Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN), but it applies just as well to Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ).

• [By Keith Speights]

  The big reason Humira will maintain its position at the top is the U.S. market. U.S. sales of the drug are projected to be around $12.2 billion in 2024. That's not much lower than Humira's 2017 U.S. sales of nearly $12.4 billion. Will Amgen's (NASDAQ:AMGN) biosimilar Amjevita, which will go on sale in the U.S. effective Jan. 31, 2023, really make that small of a dent in Humira's sales? Not really. The impact will be greater than the 2024 projections indicate.

Best Biotech Stocks To Buy For 2019: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc.(ALNY)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Cory Renauer]

  Anyone who likes a good underdog story will want to keep their eye on Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALNY) and GW Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ:GWPH) through this year and next as they launch their first products in the U.S. Smaller biotechs have a terrible track record when it comes to launching new drugs on their own, but most analysts expect these companies to buck the trend and propel their recently approved drugs to blockbuster status within a few years.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALNY) by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 492,768 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,992 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.49% of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals worth $48,533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALNY) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Investment Research from a hold rating to a sell rating. According to Zacks, “Although we are pleased with Alnylam’s broad and promising pipeline, we note that most candidates are in their early or mid stages of development. These candidates still have a long way to go before hitting the market. Currently, Alnylam depends heavily on Onpattro for growth. We also note that gaining approval for pipeline candidates has become more difficult now.  However,  In August, Alnylam got a significant boost with the approval of Onpattro (patisiran), a first-of-its-kind RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutic, both in the United States and in Europe, for the treatment of the polyneuropathy of hereditary transthyretin-mediated (hATTR) amyloidosis in adults. This is the first approved candidate for the company and hence should drive revenues. Loss estimates have remained stable ahead of the Q3 earnings release.”

• [By Jim Crumly]

  Commercial success for Tegsedi is not a done deal even if it's approved worldwide; Alnylam Pharmaceuticals' (NASDAQ:ALNY) competing drug patisiran was approved by the FDA on Aug. 10. Alnylam's clinical testing showed cardiac benefits for patients whose cardiovascular systems have been affected by the disease, and Alnylam believes that will give patisiran an advantage over Tegsedi. But in the conference call, Akcea executives brushed off that concern and pointed to the advantage Tegsedi has in being an injection that can be delivered at home, versus patisiran, which is administered intravenously in a clinic. We shall see.

Best Biotech Stocks To Buy For 2019: ArQule Inc.(ARQL)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on ArQule (ARQL)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  ArQule (NASDAQ:ARQL)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $6.00 price target on the biotechnology company’s stock, up from their prior price target of $5.00. Needham & Company LLC’s price target suggests a potential upside of 134.38% from the company’s previous close.

• [By Cory Renauer]

  What's behind these dramatic gains? Read on to find out.

  Company Gain in H1 2018 Market Cap Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARWR) 270% $1.19 billion ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL) 235% $482 million Endocyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECYT) 222% $959 million Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:MDGL) 205% $3.99 billion

  Data source: YCharts.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Shares of ArQule, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQL) were down 5.4% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $4.71 and last traded at $4.73. Approximately 3,358,864 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 289% from the average daily volume of 863,008 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.00.