Research Notes

This month introduces the Member Digest, our new summary of recent events, upcoming events, and exploring a biotech investing topic. This month we rank the acquisition potential of each company in the coverage ecosystem.

The business is poised for an inflection point in 2024 as it ramps multiple new products and returns to cash-flow positive operations, the deterioration of which has been the primary driver of Wall Street's disinterest in the stock.

Management says slower-than-expected conversions from hospital value analysis committees are to blame, but hopes for achieving the low-end of full-year 2024 revenue guidance seem misplaced.

The base editing pioneer paused development of cardiometabolic candidate VERVE-101 after reporting serious adverse events in a dose escalation study. The side effects were almost certainly related to the drug delivery tool and PCSK9 inhibition, not the base editor itself.

The drug developer declined to provide full-year 2024 revenue guidance until it has more data from the launches of Loqtorzi (January 2) and Udenyca Onbody (February 21).

The number of patients eligible for their second or third Cologuard screening will increase from an estimated 1.4 million in 2023 to 2.0 million in 2024. Revenue from rescreens could grow at least 85% from 2022 to 2025.

A commercially uncompetitive competitive landscape and at-home dosing bodes very well for Vyjuvek, but its efficacy could stall growth from long-term patients – eventually.

The FDA-approved indication likely won't launch until early 2026, but the business expects to achieve cash flow breakeven and profitability by Q3 2025 at the latest.

The RNAi drug developer will effectively place a ceiling on non-core R&D expenses. The decision can help to offset fast-growing expenses in support of core cardiometabolic and lung programs.

The DNA synthesis leader is growing revenue at a solid clip and improving operating efficiency. Although operating income is a distant milestone, Express Genes should accelerate its arrival.

The Emirati Genome Program ended short of its revenue target, while U.S. curbs on NVIDIA chip exports have ensnarled Oxford Nanopore's flagship instruments. The business remains strong.

As RNAi drug candidates target diseases outside the liver, they'll be able to address significantly larger patient populations. That creates a huge problem for scaling manufacturing.

Coherus BioSciences is selling its commercial infrastructure for ophthalmology biosimilars to Sandoz for roughly $190 million. Slimming down and focusing on oncology has pros and cons.

The drug developer will have three significant data readouts for RLY-4008 and RLY-2608. Unfortunately for impatient investors, they're all slated for the second half of the year.

The company set a very high bar for revenue growth in 2024 with a whopping 63% leap from last year. Although it matches our model, falling short could be painful for investors.

INOVIO Pharmaceuticals will evaluate a combination of Loqtorzi (toripalimab) with INO-3112 as a treatment for throat cancer in a phase 3 study.

Selecta Biosciences, now Cartesian Therapeutics, is a completely different company with a messy share structure. We've decided to replace it with a larger, more investable biotech stock.

The finch is getting rid of the Flyers category and replacing two companies in the biotech stocks we cover.

Solt DB Invest's base case assumes Amgen will use its sweeping patent estate to stall Udenyca Onbody. We don't expect revenue until at least 2025.

The acquisition gives Certara the leading biosimulation platform for biologics, but is unlikely to stave off headwinds on the horizon in 2024.