I will admit...

...that the meteoric rise in $IBB (the biotech sector ETF) has me a little nervous, particularly in our position in Galectin Therapeutics ($GALT) which has doubled in price largely due to the momentum of IBB and Intercept Pharmaceuticals (ICPT, the successful competitor of $GALT) dragging GALT up without any material change in the likelihood of success of GALT's GR-MD-02. I'm actually thinking about removing GALT from the model portfolio, but still following it in this blog, because I'm getting nervous of just how far it has ran (and the fact that in my model portfolio, our official open date was just a few days ago, the mid-teens, rather than a few months ago when GALT was below $10 price per share). Something I will ponder over the weekend.

Endocyte, the SMDC, and the future of clinical oncology...

...or the future of arthritis treatment and cardiovascular disease prevention?

Part Three: The Future, The Bull, and the Arthritic Arithmetic

I disclaim: I am long shares of ECYT. 


As a reminder, you can find parts one and two of this series here and here, respectively. We left our story in Part 2 with Endocyte in a bind: a failed Phase III clinical trial on their lead compound, the loss of a $1 billion partnership with a world-leader in drug development, and a plunging price per share. However, I outlined what I believe are a few potential pluses of the stock at this level: the limited downside of the stock due to the value of Endocyte's SMDC technology, and the potential for success in the company's other clinical trials. Today, I want to talk about the company's most immature preclinical product, which I believe holds greater potential upside than its cancer applications: anti-inflammation.

A macrophage, being all inflammatory.
You know how they get. Source.

Endocyte, the SMDC, and the future of clinical oncology...

...or the future of arthritis treatment and cardiovascular disease prevention?

Part Two: The Company's Position


As a reminder, I am long shares of ECYT. 

Endocyte, the SMDC, and the future of clinical oncology...

...or the future of arthritis treatment and cardiovascular disease prevention?

Part One: The Premise

I'd like to take the time to disclaim here that I'm long Endocyte ($ECYT). I'm also ridiculously, unhealthily bullish about the prospects of this company in the next decade or two. Just so we get that out of the way: I'm going to try and make this the most fair and even-keeled assessment that I can, but be aware of my stance toward this company. Now that that's out of the way, onto the show!

The Keeping of the Record

In order for this to be the most maximal learning experience, I'm going to be adding a 'model portfolio' of what I would do if I was only going to invest in pharmaceutical companies based on the information that I've presented here, just so that I have something to keep myself intellectually honest about my efforts.

Me, after my stunningly prescient biotech stock picks. (lol)

This 'model portfolio' is definitely, DEFINITELY not an exhortation to follow any of the trades/investment theses presented during my time on this blog, it's just a way for me to keep track of myself. Hopefully it'll teach me about biotech investing, without me having to actually risk a substantial amount of capital to learn the same lesson. Of course, nothing is the same as when you get to "the real deal", but I think it can still be a good developmental tool for myself. I'll also post it on here once I find a way to permalink it to the front page, so that other people can watch my progress/success/failure as it happens!

Happy Investing!

JVS




This (and the eventual model portfolio) is not a trade recommendation, or a financial recommendation of any kind. 

Update on Galectin Therapeutics ($GALT):

Preclinical Trial Reassuring, if Little Else

Disclaimer: the author is no longer long shares or options of $GALT, but is considering entering a small position the next month.

Monday, Galectin Therapeutics announced the results of a small preclinical study. You can read about the results from their investor relations website. You can also click here to see my previous take on Galectin Therapeutics. There are definitely some large positives in their brief press release, along with a few questions I'm left with. Hit the jump for my take on what the preclinical trial means.

I'm Baaaaaack

Hey everyone, sorry for the complete (literal) dearth of posts in the last 3 months; med school finals and summer lab rotations started to get way too busy, and interfered with my first love: investing!

So, I'm really going to try hard to make this at least a biweekly (if not weekly) blogging foray. Tomorrow or Monday I'm going to post my thoughts on a biotech position that I'm currently in, one that I wish I had waited to enter until this week. Hopefully I can illuminate why in the upcoming post. I truly think it's a robust opportunity, for a company that I am expecting to hold for AT LEAST 5-10 years. Let's discuss.