BST Trade Alert – October 8, 2015
Recommendation:
Buy Anthera Pharma (NASDAQ: $ANTH) up to $7.00 per share.
About the Company:
Anthera Pharmecuticals is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing products to treat serious and life-threatening diseases, including lupus, IgA nephropathy, and exocrine insufficiency due to cystic fibrosis. The company focuses on treatments and medicines with current unmet needs.
Anthera currently has three drugs that are in the clinical stage of research, SOLUTION, Chablis-SC, and Bright-SC. Anthera recently announced that they have regained worldwide rights to the drug, Blisibimod, which is being tested in the Chablis-SC study, after ending a partnership with Zanyaku, a Japanese company.
The company released more shares of the company in July, increasing its cash position to $27 million. They also received a $3 million grant from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
The company released shares of its company at a price of $7.50 and this year we have seen that stock reach a high of $11.65.
About the Drug:
Blisibimod is being studied in the Chablis-SC1 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus. Blisibimod is a selective peptibody antagonist of the B-cell activating factor (BAFF) cytokine. BAFF is a tumor necrosis and it is critical to the survival of B-cells. Blisibimod binds to BAFF and inhibits interaction with BAFF receptors, thus decreasing B-cell survival throughout the body.
About the Market for This Drug:
Lupis is a chronic, autoimmune disease that can damage any part of the body. Lupus is disease of flares and remissions. More than 16,000 new cases of lupus are reported each year.
According to the Lupus Foundation of America, at least 1.5 million Americans suffer from the disease. Worldwide that number is estimated at 5 million.
That’s a lot of Lupus patients in need of cure for the disease.
Lupus affects mostly women of childbearing age, however, men and children can also develop the disease. People of all races and ethnic group can develop lupus.
There are many celebrities that publicly support Lupus and have been diagnosed with the condition. Just last week Selena Gomez announced that she had been diagnosed with the disease.
A better treatment for Lupus is in great demand. If Anthera is the one that finds it, they will see large financial gains.
About the Potential Catalyst:
Chablis-SC1 is a multicenter, randomizes, double-blind, placebo-controlled study designed to evaluate the efficacy, safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of blisibimod.
The study enrolled 400 patients in 15 countries across America, Europe, and Asia. The patients will either receive a placebo or 200mg of blisibimid in addition to their current medical treatment for a course of 52 weeks.
The primary goal of the study is to evaluate clinical improvement in the SRI-6 response after 52 weeks. Additional testing will be conducted to further assess reduction in lupus flares and differentiation from current available medications.
Needless to say, if the drug gets FDA approved, Anthera will benefit financially.
About the Shares:
ANTH is currently trading for $6.03. The stock reached a high of $11.65 in August. In June, the stock was trading for under $5.00.
This looks like a time to buy considering all of the positive developments and the support level just below the current price. Look to pick up your shares below $7.00.
Key Facts:
Company: Anthera Pharmaceuticals
Ticker: ANTH
Recent Price: $6.03
Market Cap: $248.89 million
Average Daily Volume: 1.12 million
Chart:
Category: BST Trade Alert
