Antares Pharmaceuticals is a Hot Biopharma Investment Right Now
I'm getting back into action here with BioPharma Investor. There is a lot of work I need to do to fix this website and upgrade it as it should be better, but on that note...
So let's start off with Antares Pharma. Most of my previous stocks that I have written about have done very well in the past few years so I'll continue with that trend with this stock: ATRS.
ATRS FDA Approval PDUFA Date is Oct. 14th
Antares Pharma is a nice play that is gaining a lot of attention this summer with their upcoming PDUFA Date Oct. 14th. This means a nice summer runup for October. With all the hype and partnerships with TEVA and Pfizer buyout talks it seems like a good buy at around $4 a share that it sits as of today.If you are new to the investing world and looking for a nice Biorunup, this is probably a pretty good bet. With that being said, I really hope to get back into writing for BioPharma Investor and showing a clear and concise Due Diligence of the stock and why it's a buy or sell.
Here's a few web links to help you out on Antares and what they are all about.
- From MarketWatch: ATRS Antares Pharma
- From Yahoo Finance: Big News with Antares Pharma Welcomes Marvin Samson to Board of Directors, from Global Manufacturing Leader, TEVA
- From Morningstar, their analysis of Antares Stock ATRS
- From Seeking Alpha: 4 Top Small Cap Biotech Acquisition Targets: Trius, Antares, Acadia, AcelRx Pharmaceuticals
- From Investor's Hub: ATRS
This is what that blogger from Seeking Alpha, Scott Matusow has to say about Antares. I agree with a commenter that a buyout would be a couple of years down the road.
Antares Pharma (ATRS)
I continue to hear buzz that Antares could be acquired sometime before the end of this year.
Pfizer is the best candidate to buy Antares as both companies already have a working relationship in the form of a "secret deal" that I speculate is an Advil gel based formulation. Company CEO Paul Wotton mentioned last year that Pfizer came to Antares to inquire about one of Antares products, but company Vice President Jack Howarth said that Antares sought out Pfizer for the same deal. Someone is obviously "mistaken" here. I first heard the buyout rumors surrounding Antares in December of 2011, well before the company "appointed" Jack Howarth as a Vice President. Jack is not an official "insider" at Antares, yet has informed some Antares investors that he holds over 400,000 shares of the company. So who does Jack work for? Jack's last official job was with King Pharma, a company Pfizer acquired a few years ago.
The main reason I believe Pfizer will acquire Antares is for its patent profile it holds in regards to biosimilars.
Biosimilars/biobetters, or follow-on biologics, are terms used to describe officially approved subsequent versions of innovator biopharmaceutical products made by a different sponsor following patent and exclusivity expiry on the innovator product (biosimilars being "similar," biobetters being "better").
Follow-on manufacturers do not have access to the originator's molecular clone and original cell bank, the exact fermentation and purification process, or to the active drug substance.
In other words, companies do not need to wait for patent expiration of a biologic to get its hands on the formulation. In fact, because biosimilars/biobetters do not use the exact composition of the biologic drug it is "following after," it is not considered a "copy," therefore, it is not a generic, but a new composition capable of its own unique patent protection. Many large pharmas are gearing up for what I believe to be the wave of the future in biopharmas - biosimilars and biobetters.
Antares has been locking down patents for the past few years with biosimilars, and many speculate the company has a raft-load of these patents secured. Since biosimilars are likely to be the future of biopharma, Antares has placed itself as a strong acquisition target, and as mentioned, I believe Pfizer will be the buyer.
Also, starting in June, there will be warrant expiration occurring. Last year I predicted that Antares would see a pop in its stock price to over $5 a share when the stock was selling for around $3. I based my prediction primarily on the fact of warrant expiration at the time.
I am predicting a similar occurrence this year, and expect a price approaching $5 by the middle of this summer.
Buy out price target opinion: between $7 to $10 a share.
