Biotech Penny Stocks To Watch After Bullish Analyst Ratings
This weekend we discussed how analyst ratings could play a role with penny stocks. Also, reports that accompany them shed light on the future outlook and potential catalysts these firms have an interest in. When it comes to finding the best penny stocks to buy, market sentiment has its place. It can often influence momentum.
Recently, we’ve seen this play out for plenty of stocks. This includes names like GameStop (NYSE: GME), AMC Entertainment (NYSE: AMC), and even bigger names like Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA). Something to keep in mind is just because an analyst is bullish, that doesn’t mean stocks will only go up. More research is always useful.
What’s more, GME, AMC, and TSLA aren’t penny stocks. When it comes to stocks under $5, there’s a lot more you need to look at too. Beyond the general volatility in the market, if you’re looking at investing in penny stocks, fundamentals should play a role.
[Read More] Small-Cap & Penny Stocks To Watch In May Hitting It Big In 2021
Back to my example about analysts, these firms will focus on the inner workings of companies more than they will look at the overall market trends. They’ll look at things like management, product or treatment pipelines, recent or pending deals, and the like. Based on what they find, fundamentally, they’ll put together a general thesis and, many times, issue a price target based on the results of their research.
Biotech Stocks To Watch
One of the more active industries that analysts have an appeal to is biotech. The future potential of drug candidates, treatment pipelines, and even upcoming data readouts play their part. They’ve essentially created a hotbed of info for different Wall Street firms to look into and craft an investment thesis about.
In this article, we’ll take a look at a few current and past penny stocks that’ve progressed in different stages of growth. Furthermore, based on their progress, all have seen an uptick of interest in analyst sentiment. It’ll be up to you to decide if you agree or disagree with their outlook before deciding to put them on your trading watch list or not.
- GT Biopharma (NASDAQ: GTBP)
- Scopus Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ: SCPS)
- Sesen Bio Inc. (NASDAQ: SESN)
GT Biopharma (NASDAQ: GTBP)
Shares of GT Biopharma continued rallying higher this week after a third analyst firm began coverage on the company. Prior to this week, Roth Capital and B. Riley both issued Buy ratings on GTBP stock. Where B.Riley’s price target sits at $21, Roth issued a target of $25. Now, H.C. Wainwright has aligned its outlook with the latter of the two firms. Analyst Robert Burns initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and announced $25 target on May 24th.
If you remember our update from earlier this month, analysts are focused on GT Biopharma’s current and future treatment pipeline. In particular, the company’s TriKE platform has shown promise in addressing numerous types of immune diseases. These include acute myeloid leukemia, myelodysplastic syndromes, and a number of cancers.
In fact, B. Riley analysts Justin Walsh and Mayank Mamtani stated earlier this month that “The longer you look, the better it gets.” This was in reference to GT Biopharma’s pipeline and lead treatment GTB-3550 TriKE™ (click here for the full analyst report). They “believe that the future and clinical development pathway for GTB-3550 will be clearer by the end of the summer, with multiple potential outcomes providing opportunities for investors to benefit.”
More To Watch With GTBP Stock
Last week, the company held a treatment update call about interim GTB-3550 TriKE™ data with Dr. Jeffrey S. Miller. Dr. Miller is the company’s Chief Scientific Officer overseeing the development of the company’s GTB-3550 trials. He’s also credited with being one of the pioneers in Natural Killer (NK) cell treatments.
Highlights that were discussed on last week’s call focused on GTB-3550’s ability to lower bone marrow blast levels by as much as 63.7% in some patients. Another unique aspect of the current trials is that GTB3550 TriKE could induce reproducible NK cell proliferation in all patients at all dose levels evaluated. The important part is that no clinically significant toxicity was experienced (playback call can be accessed by clicking here & using Replay Access Code: 10156826). Commonly, cytokine release syndrome is a side-effect of current immunotherapy treatment.
This syndrome is a general side-effect also referred to as cytokine storm and is a very negative impact on cancer treatments. Given this as the case, however, GTB-3550 has clearly shown potential. Roth analyst Tony Butler previously mentioned that “natural killer cell engagers may improve the outcomes in patients with acute myeloid leukemia and perhaps other malignancies.”
Additional TriKEs are planned for milestones in 2021 as well, including GTB-4550, 5550, and 6550 in addition to GTB-3550. With bullish analyst sentiment and current & upcoming treatment candidates in the pipeline, GTBP stock has continued its bullishness over the last few months. In fact, since early March (when it was a penny stock), shares have rallied by more than 220% so far.
Scopus Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:SCPS)
Another one of the biotech penny stocks that’ve captivated retail traders and analysts recently is Scopus Biopharma. The company develops therapeutics that target immuno-oncology RNA therapies. In particular, Scopus’ lead treatment targets multiple cancers.
Starting off the week, the company announced that it received FDA approval for an Investigational New Drug Application for its lead drug candidate, CpG-STAT3siRNA. Now, a Phase 1 trial for B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma will begin at the City of Hope. This is a well-known research and treatment center for cancer, diabetes, and other diseases.
More To Watch With SCPS Stock
As a newer company, Scopus has only been public since December of 2020. The company initially raised just under $3 million from its IPO debut. While this wasn’t technically a penny stock initially, shares hovered around $5 earlier this month. That was, until the news on May 24th. Since the announcement, SCPS stock has surged past the $17 mark. Furthermore, even though it’s a newer company, analysts have also begun following the company closely.
[Read More] 5 Penny Stocks Analysts Say To Buy With Targets Up To 219% Right Now
Benchmark Research started Scopus with a Speculative Buy rating as well as a price target of $20. Analyst Aydin Huseynov believes that the company’s STAT3 inhibitor gene therapy, CO-sTiRNA, has “a reasonable chance to show clinically relevant results” in recurrent and hard-to-treat aggressive Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma indications. Huseynov gave this outlook several months before today’s news and expected the IND submission during the second half of the year.
With Scopus coming in “ahead of schedule” based on the analyst’s outlook, it could be one of the former penny stocks to watch right now.
Sesen Bio Inc. (NASDAQ: SESN)
This weekend Sesen Bio was one of the names on our list of penny stocks to watch based on analyst ratings. In particular, Canaccord Genuity analyst John Newman has a Buy rating and a $5.00 price target on the company. His main focus is on Sesen’s Vicineum treatment for Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer. Newman explained that urologists may prefer Vicineum vs. Keytruda, as it “has shown stronger data in terms of time to cystectomy, and should carry premium pricing similar to Keytruda ($165,000/yr).”
Merck’s (NYSE: MRK) KEYTRUDA prescription treats a kind of bladder and urinary tract cancer called urothelial carcinoma. Sesen completed its Biologics License Application (BLA) submission for Vicineum in 4Q20. The Canaccord analyst expects priority review, “especially given the ongoing serious Bacillus Calmette-Guerin shortage for treatment of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.”
More To Watch With SESN Stock
The FDA decides to accept the BLA and offers priority review within 60 days from the filing date. If necessary, an FDA panel would be “a significant positive for Vicineum, boosting visibility,” says Newman.
In a recent quarterly update, Thomas Cannell, CEO of Sesen, said the company expects potential approval in the US this August. He’s also aiming to get into Europe early next year. Priority Review has a target PDUFA date of August 18th. Though this is still months away, bullish sentiment from analysts and a positive outlook from management could be a few underlying catalysts to keep in mind if SESN is on your list of penny stocks to watch right now.
What Do You Do With Penny Stocks & Analyst Ratings?
Everyone has their own ways of researching penny stocks to buy. Some only focus on market momentum. Others will look at fundamentals first. No matter your strategy, more information is never a bad thing, and understanding what’s driving a directional move is important. At the very least, analyst reports can help cut through the noise in the market and boil down the basics of the general outlook for a given company.
Pursuant to an agreement between Midam Ventures LLC and GT Biopharma (GTBP) Midam has been paid $150,000 for a period from March 1, 2021, to April 1, 2021. This compensation is payment 1 of 12 as part of a 12-month agreement between Midam Ventures LLC & GT Biopharma (GTBP), for a period from March 1, 2021, to February 28, 2022. Midam Ventures LLC expects to be paid $150,000 per month for a total of 12 months by GT Biopharma (GTBP). Midam has been paid an additional $150,000 for a period from April 2, 2021, to May 1, 2021. This compensation is payment 2 of 12 as part of the Agreement. Midam has been paid an additional $150,000 for a period from May 2, 2021, to June 1, 2021. This compensation is payment 3 of 12 as part of the Agreement. We may buy or sell additional shares of GT Biopharma (GTBP) in the open market at any time, including before, during, or after the Website and Information, to provide public dissemination of favorable Information about GT Biopharma (GTBP). Click Here For Full Disclaimer.
