Are These Biotech Penny Stocks On Your Watch List Today?
Have you seen some of the biotech penny stocks today? If not, you might want to take a peek at the sector itself. With news from Pfizer that its final results on a coronavirus vaccine recorded 95% efficacy, traders are on the lookout for more opportunities. Obviously, we’re seeing epicenter stocks making big moves in the stock market today. Rightfully so as these “reopening stocks” have been closely followed since the big March sell-off.
But these are the only types of penny stocks traders are looking for. With biotechnology a major focus right now, the sympathy trade in favor of sector momentum is alive and well. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking at the Biotech ETF (IBB Report) or the Healthcare ETF (XLV Report), both are up on the year so far. As more vaccine news comes out, we’re continuing to see a focus placed back on the “traditional” biotech stocks. These are the companies that have continued focusing on things like cancer, mental health, pain management, and the like. Now that many investors got an early taste of these volatile penny stocks earlier this year, that high continues to be chased.
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If you look at the stock market today, some of the most notable are within the health-related sector. Whether its traditional drug treatment pipelines or health & wellness, traders are looking for opportunities in related names. With that has come a wave of momentum for certain stocks under $5. Are Any of these on your list of penny stocks to watch right now?
Penny Stocks To Watch: Havn Life Sciences
Havn Life Sciences (HAVLF Stock Report) is one of the emerging health sciences companies to watch recently. This comes after the latest voter results have placed a focus on psychedelics. Oregon became the first state to legalize magic mushrooms this year. Meanwhile, Denver, Colorado, and Oakland, California have both signed legislation to decriminalize magic mushrooms. Furthermore, the Canadian government is allowing patients who are not terminally ill to legally consume psychedelic mushrooms.
This has pushed the envelope for companies who’re exploring psychedelics like psilocybin to address mental health issues. There are even ways companies are finding to utilize mycological developments for general wellbeing on a recreational side. Who other than Vic Neufeld, former CEO of Aphria Inc. (APHA Stock Report) to be one of the names at the forefront of the next “sindustry” boom? Neufeld is now the Executive Director of Havn Life Sciences working to deploy the same strategy that took Aphria on a 2,200% growth trajectory from 2014-2019, with Havn. The company itself has built a leadership and management team with decades of experience; many had succeeded in building big cannabis brands during the early days of the cannabis stock boom. The focus now is on making psychedelics a mainstream treatment.
This month HAVLF stock has begun to more actively trade in the U.S. The initial spark came after Havn announced that it received approval from Health Canada for six of its natural health product formulations. These formulations are the first of what will be a range of natural health products that Havn Life is developing for launch in 2021. This week the company entered into voluntary escrow agreements whereby 6.3 million shares will be restricted from resale until March of 2021 instead of the original date of January 8th.
Penny Stocks To Watch: Jaguar Health Inc.
Jaguar Health Inc. (JAGX Stock Report) is another one of the biotech penny stocks under $1. Despite missing on its earnings results, shares have gotten a boost on Wednesday. JAGX stock jumped from a close of $0.19 on Tuesday to highs of over $0.21 on Wednesday. The company focuses on its Mytesi product. The U.S. FDA has approved this for the symptomatic relief of noninfectious diarrhea in adults with HIV/AIDS on antiretroviral therapy.
In addition to this, Jaguar has also explored options for psychedelic compounds in the past. In October, the company launched Entheogen Therapeutics Initiative. The goal is developing natural medicines from psychoactive plants.
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“There are around eight psychoactive and psychadelic compounds in various formulations and stages of development by other companies, such as psilocybin, MDMA, and ibogaine,” said Lisa Conte, Jaguar’s president and CEO. “Jaguar is focused on advancing plant-based innovation for patients and on identifying the next generation of plant-based first-in-class agents for treatment of mental health conditions, and alstonine may prove to be the first in a new class of plant-based antipsychotic compounds.”
Penny Stocks To Watch: Bellus Health Inc.
Shares of Bellus Health Inc. (BLU Stock Report) have been relatively quiet since dropping in July. The company came head to head with a bad readout in Phase 2 trial results of its BLU-5937 treatment for refractory chronic cough. Since then the company has been working on its pipeline and further R&D efforts. After raising around $40 million back in October, BLU stock attracted additional interest from Steven Cohen’s Point72 Asset Management. This vote of confidence from such an institution didn’t trigger much of a spark in price but average daily volumes were noticeably higher since.
In its latest quarterly update, the company expanded on the plans for the road ahead. Roberto Bellini, President and Chief Executive Officer of BELLUS Health explained, ” Back in September, we announced the trial design of our Phase 2b SOOTHE trial for the treatment of refractory chronic cough, refining our clinical strategy for BLU-5937 based on learnings from the Phase 2 RELIEF trial. Following a meeting with the FDA this month, we remain on track to initiate the SOOTHE trial in the fourth quarter of 2020. In addition, we continue to believe that BLU-5937’s mechanism may have broad applicability as a potential treatment for many additional hypersensitization-related conditions, and are looking forward to initiating the Phase 2 BLUEPRINT trial in patients with chronic pruritus associated with atopic dermatitis also in the fourth quarter of 2020.”
This week, Evercore ISI Group initiated coverage on BELLUS giving it an Outperform rating and $12 price target. This has left an impression on the market as BLU stock climbed over 25% from its Tuesday closing price.
Penny Stocks To Watch: Akebia Therapeutics
Similar to BELLUS, Akebia Therapeutics (AKBA Stock Report) became a penny stock this in the third quarter. In early September, Akebia announced that its Vadadustat failed to meet its primary safety endpoint in a Phase 3 trial for treating anemia. Since then, AKBA stock has seen a few periods of bullishness but remained relatively flat, overall since September. This week, AKBA stock has spiked a bit higher, further extending the uptrend it has seen since the beginning of November.
This week, the company announced the publication of a manuscript detailing the study design and methodology for its global Phase 3 INNO2VATE program. This was in Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation (NDT), the official journal for the European Renal Association-European Dialysis and Transplant Association (ERA-EDTA).
According to the company, the publication of this manuscript in “marks the first publication in a peer-reviewed journal related to a global Phase 3 program of an oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor (HIF-PHI) being evaluated as a potential treatment for anemia due to chronic kidney disease (CKD). In response, Steven K. Burke, M.D. and Chief Medical Officer of Akebia said, “Our medical team continues to support vadadustat’s potential with a comprehensive publication plan that is expected to yield additional peer-reviewed publications this year and next year.”
Month-to-date, AKBA stock is up 30% so far.
Penny Stocks To Watch: Brickell Biotech Inc.
Brickell Biotech (BBI Stock Report), similar to AKBA and BLU has been trying to recover from a recent sell-off. Toward the end of October, BBI stock dropped from over 90 cents to a recent low of $0.466. This came after announcing a $15 million public offering at a discount. Keep in mind that public companies, especially biotech, raise money in large sums for beefing up their cash position. Specifically, Brickell said it would use the net proceeds for research and development, including clinical trials, working capital and general corporate purposes.
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Fast-forward a few weeks and BBI stock is back on the move. This comes as the company recently announced the lauch date of its sofpironium bromide gel in Japan. Under the brand name ECCLOCK®, it will be sold in Japan for the once daily treatment of primary axillary hyperhidrosis on November 26, 2020. Furthermore, ECCLOCK® was also placed on Japan’s National Health Insurance drug reimbursement price list.
Brickell recently initiated its pivotal Phase 3 clinical program in the U.S. This trial consists of 2 pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials. Cardigan I and II will study the safety and efficacy of sofpironium bromide gel, 15% compared to placebo. The company expects to report topline data from both studies in Q4 of 2021.
