June
10, 2021
6 min read
This story originally appeared on StockMarket
3 Biotech Stocks For Your June Watchlist
When looking for the most active stocks today, investors would likely think of meme stocks. However, biotech stocks may also come to mind as well in the stock market today. As most seasoned investors would know, the biotech industry is jam-packed with exciting news for traders to digest. Namely, the biotech industry is filled with companies that conduct research on life-improving treatments. Given the vast array of illnesses to be cured today, investors would have plenty of companies to choose from now.
For instance, a very prominent example would be COVID-19. Following the outbreak of the pandemic, countless biotech companies sprang into action to develop a vaccine. Now, companies such as Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA) and Novavax Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX) are in the spotlight thanks to their vaccines. In the case of Moderna, the company’s vaccine continues to make its way across the globe now. Just yesterday, news broke of the U.S. government reportedly being in negotiations with Moderna to secure additional vaccine doses for other countries. Elsewhere, investors appear keen on Novavax’s upcoming vaccine candidate as well. Analysts from both B. Riley Securities and Jefferies hit the company’s shares with a Buy rating, citing that the company is nearing regulatory approval. As it stands, both MRNA stock and NVAX stock have more than tripled in value over the past year.
At the same time, even the bigger names in the biotech field are not sitting idly by. Take Biogen (NASDAQ: BIIB) for example who just received FDA approval for its Alzheimer’s treatment this week, an industry first. As a result, BIIB stock is currently looking at gains of over 40% this week. With all that in mind, here are three trending biotech stocks in the stock market now.
Best Biotech Stocks To Buy [Or Sell] Now
BioNTech
Starting us off today is BioNTech, the other half to the pioneering Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) vaccine. For the uninitiated, BioNTech is a German biotech company that develops and manufactures active immunotherapies. Aside from the coronavirus vaccine, the company’s developmental pipeline also focuses heavily on a wide array of cancers. Through this comprehensive oncology pipeline, BioNTech is currently working with healthcare players such as Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: REGN) and Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Now, BNTX stock is currently looking at gains of over 400% in the past year. Could it still have room to run this year?
Well, for one thing, the company’s work in the coronavirus vaccine field is far from over. Late last month, BioNTech’s vaccine candidate received its first authorization in the European Union for use in adolescents. Given the age group’s arguably underdeveloped immune systems, this is a remarkable development for BioNTech. According to the company, the vaccine can now be applied to individuals between the ages of 12 to 15 years old. Not only would this serve to accelerate vaccination efforts globally, but it would also provide BioNTech with additional market reach.
If that wasn’t enough, the company could also be getting additional orders from the U.S. According to the Washington Post, the Biden administration is looking to buy 500 million doses of BioNTech’s vaccine to redistribute to other countries. For now, it is estimated that all doses will likely be distributed by the first half of 2022. Covax, the World Health Organization (WHO)-backed initiative, will be in charge of the global distribution. By and large, this marks a win-win situation as BioNTech can market more vaccines while countries in need receive critical aid. Does this make BNTX stock a top buy for you now?
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Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Another biotech company to know now would be Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc. In brief, the company primarily focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of synthetic DNA products. Said products serve to treat infectious diseases, cancer, and sexually transmitted diseases. Moreover, Inovio also boasts a massive list of notable partners and collaborators from both governments and private organizations. These include but are not limited to AstraZeneca (NASDAQ: AZN), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the National Institutes of Health.
Impressive operations aside, INO stock appears to be catching investors’ attention now. This appears to be the case as the company’s shares are up by over 45% in the past month. For the most part, this would be thanks to the company’s work on its supposed DNA vaccine, INO-4802. As of last month, Inovio’s vaccine candidate produced strong signs of efficacy across multiple strains of the virus in preclinical studies. Notably, this could potentially make it a “next-generation Pan-COVID-19 vaccine candidate”, according to Inovio.
Aside from that, the company is also hard at work on its earlier COVID-19 vaccine candidate INO-4800 as well. Earlier today, Inovio announced that it would be expanding its current partnership with Chinese biotech company, Advaccine. The duo will now be conducting global Phase 3 trials for INO-4800 in a two-dose regimen. In terms of subjects, individuals 18 years and older across the Latin America and Asia regions will be involved. CEO Dr. Joseph Kim cites global vaccination rates being below 10% as a key driver to accelerate these tests. Could INO stock be worth adding to your portfolio because of all this?
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Connect Biopharma Holdings Ltd
Following that, we have Connect Biopharma. For some context, it is a global clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company looking to treat patients with chronic inflammatory diseases. It does so via the development of therapies derived from T cell-based research. For a sense of scale, the company has operations in China, the U.S., and Australia. On top of that, Connect Biopharma also runs additional clinical development activities in Europe. In a nutshell, the company uses small molecules and antibodies to target T cells, which in turn serve to screen and discover potent drug candidates.
If anything, Connect Biopharma’s portfolio continues to expand significantly and investors seem to be reacting accordingly. Diving right into it, the company announced the commencement of a Phase 2 trial for its Asthma treatment, CBP-201. Since the announcement early on May 12, CNTB stock has surged by over 20%. Specifically, the treatment is being evaluated for use in adults with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma. Approximately 300 patients across 80 clinical sites in the U.S., China, the European Union, the U.K., Ukraine, and South Korea.
According to Dr. Edward Kerwin, founder of the Clinical Research Institute, Allergy and Asthma Center, this is a significant development. He said, “Beginning enrollment on the CBP-201 clinical trial offers hope in the pursuit of new, effective treatments for severe asthma.” Given the scale and importance of Connect Biopharma’s latest project, we could be looking at exciting times ahead for CNTB stock. Would you agree?
