Pfizer to Acquire Seagen Pfizer (PFE) is to acquire Seagen (SGEN) for $229 per share in cash, for a total enterprise value of approximately $43 billion Dr. Albert Bourla, Pfizer Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Pfizer is deploying its financial resources to advance the battle against cancer, a leading cause of death worldwide with a significant impact on public health. Together, Pfizer and Seagen …

Seagen, Astellas Pharma & Merck Collaboration Seagen (SGEN) and Astellas Pharma (ALPMY) have entered a clinical collaboration . . . This content is for paid subscribers. Please click here to subscribe or here to log in.

Is Merck to Acquire Seagen? The Wall Street Journal reported that Merck is in advanced talks to buy Seagen in a deal that could be worth $40 billion or more. The report, cited by people familiar with the matter, said that the companies are discussing a price above $200 a share for SGEN. It is said that the acquisition will help Merck boost its products …

Seagen and Genmab Granted FDA Accelerated Approval for TIVDAK™ The U.S. FDA granted accelerated approval to Seagen Inc (SGEN) and Genmab A/S (

Seattle Genetics Two New Strategic Oncology Collaborations with Merck Seattle Genetics (SGEN) and Merck (

COVID-19 at Its Peak? The number of deaths from the COVID-19 outbreak in NYC are expected to peak soon. This expectation is coming from a prestigious trustworthy Washington University. The news also stated that Italy is turning the corner if it has not already turned it. They are reporting the lowest death toll for two weeks. France also reported a slowing of daily deaths while …

Prohost Letter #439 The Coronavirus Outbreak - COVID-19 The news announced that the coronavirus (now known as COVID-19) outbreak would affect not only people’s health and survival but the world’s economy, Wall Street’s performance, and especially the international giant industrial firms that are committed to China. British AstraZeneca (AZN

Prohost Letter #438 End of the Year Issue  2019 Happy New Year 2020 The NASDAQ reached 9000 for the first time in the market history on December 30, 2019. However, on the last trading day of 2019, the Nasdaq Composite Index closed at 8,945.99 after giving back 60.62 points or 0.7%. During the departed year, however, the stock exchange was boosted by the outperformance of …

The Week in Review #48 Holiday Edition ******************** Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah! We Wish You a Happy New Year Filled with Excellent Health, Peace of Mind, Prosperity and Happiness What a Year for Biotechnology What happened in the biotech sector toward the end of 2019 is briefed in this Review as we focus on the performance of our picked firms’ stocks’ prices. We will …

The Week in Review #47 What A Week For Biotechnology Synopsis In this “Week in Review” there is no complicated scientific and clinical information, leaving the details to the articles that we usually post on the Prohost website. Most of the Prohost picked firms’ Q3 financial results have beaten expectations. Three firms have reached the Prohost 2019 targets, and more firms have outperformed, with some …

The Week in Review #46 The Quarterly Financial Results The quarterly financial results that analysts and investors relied on for years to evaluate biotech firms, including development stage firms, seem to change. Investors have finally realized that development-stage firms have no marketed drugs and no revenues, hence, no incomes and should be evaluated based on the clinical trial results of their pipeline products. They saw …

The Week in Review #43 This Past Week After hearing hints about the trade war between China and the United States being avoided the market reversed course from faltering to flying at the speed of light. This trade war replaced all important factors that would usually affect the market performances. Unemployment is the lowest since 1969 and is expected to cause a bullish market, but …

Seattle Genetics Announced Positive Results for HER2CLIMB Trial Seattle Genetics (SGEN) announced positive topline results from the HER2CLIMB trial evaluating tucatinib in HER2-positive breast cancer.  The trial compared tucatinib in combination with trastuzumab and capecitabine to trastuzumab and capecitabine

The Week in Review #42 During the Departed Week The week started with the market losing over 1000 points and ended recuperating a large extent of the losses. Desperate during the market’s plummeting, some investors were happy for the rebound and some were confused and skeptical about what the unpredictable market might bring next. In the latest Prohost Letter #436, the losses in prices of …

Seattle Genetics Stock Rally Seattle Genetics (SGEN) stock has rallied today. It gained around $10; trading at over $85, nearing the Prohost 2019 $90 target. The reason for investors’ great enthusiasm is Seattle Genetics announcement of a presentation at the European Society for Medical Oncology . . . This content is for paid subscribers. Please click here to subscribe or here to log in.

Prohost Letter #435 The Value of the Biotech Companies A Continuation of Prohost Letter #434 A Recap The biotech near and long-term values, we insist, must be based on the firms’ scientific capabilities, products’ potentials and financial results. In the past months the stocks evaluations by bloggers, and some assessors, have been tailored to mislead investors into serving the purposes of the manipulators’ weird agendas. …

Migraine's Really Effective Treatments The years 2018 and 2019 could be called the years of migraine’s really effective treatments. Three Calcitonin-gene-related peptide (CGRP) monoclonal antibody drugs have been approved in 2018 and 2019. They are: Aimovig for Amgen (AMGN . . . This content is for paid subscribers. Please click here to subscribe or here to log in.

Regeneron Product REGN-EB3 Saving Lives Regeneron (REGN) announced that an independent monitoring board ended its investigational product REGN-EB3 trial after reviewing interim mortality data from 499 patients. REGN-EB3 was found superior to rival therapy from Mapp Biopharmaceuticals (MAPP) in saving the lives in . . . This content is for paid subscribers. Please click here to subscribe or here to log in.

Seattle Genetics Stock Rallied Seattle Genetics (SGEN) financial results started with Clay Siegall, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of the firm stating the following: Seattle Genetics achieved record net sales in the U.S. and Canada for Adcetris, reflecting growth in frontline CD30-expressing peripheral T-cell lymphomas as well as frontline advanced Hodgkin lymphoma.   The Biologics . . . This content is for paid subscribers. Please …

Prohost Letter #432 The ASCO 2019 Special Edition SPRAYING FEAR The Victims Are The most disturbed victim of the instigated and irrelevant fear against investing in the stock market is the market itself. Indeed, baseless fear campaigns frighten positive investors while encouraging short-selling investors to maximize their selling which intensifies the markets volatility. We have been experiencing this phenomenon since the beginning of 2019. Market …

What Everyone Wants to Hear from ASCO The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting is ongoing. What the oncologists, the analysts, the researchers and investors and other interested observers are anxious to hear this year is mostly about the improvements in the immune-oncology approaches. The Oncologists Want to Hear About: Up-to-date information from clinical trials on immunotherapies in order to practice the safest and …

Following Seattle Genetics' (SGEN) and Astellas Pharma's announcement of positive results, from pivotal trial of the conjugated monoclonal antibody drug Enfortumab Vedotin in locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer, the stock experienced a selloff. Prohost Observations   We do not believe that there is anything wrong with the positive results coming out of  EV-201 trial investigating Enfortumab Vedotinfor locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer who have received previous …

Seattle Genetics (SGEN) and Takeda Pharmaceutical Limited (TKPYY) announced results from Phase 3 ECHELON-2 clinical trial evaluating Adcetris as part of a frontline combination chemotherapy regimen in patients with previously untreated CD30-expressing peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL), known also as mature T-cell lymphoma (MTCL). The data from the trial with Seattle Genetics' conjugated monoclonal antibody Adcetris (brentuximab vedotin) in combination with CHP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, prednisone) versus the control …

Seattle Genetics and Pieris pharmaceutical Collaboration Agreement Pieris Pharmaceuticals (PIRS) and Seattle Genetics (SGEN) signed a multi-program immuno-oncology collaboration agreement intended to evaluate novel bi-specific immuno-oncology agents. These agents would combine Pieris’ Anticalin proteins drugs with Seattle Genetics’ targeted antibodies to develop multiple targeted bi-specific immuno-oncology treatments for both solid and blood cancers. The Story Pieris Pharmaceuticals created recombinant engineered Anticalin protein-based therapeutics. These proteins are versions of the human protein lipocalin, which naturally bind, …

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted the supplemental Biologics License Application (BLA) for Seattle Genetics’ (SGEN) product Adcetris (brentuximab vedotin) in combination with chemotherapy for the frontline treatment of patients with advanced classical Hodgkin lymphoma. The Agency granted Priority Review for the application, and the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date is May 1, 2018. The BLA is based on positive results from a phase 3 ECHELON-1 trial designed to determine if Adcetris …

Realizing the dream of approval of a small biotech’s lead drug would usually lead a small development-stage firm to either walking on the road to more achievements and growth, or walking in place doing nothing but spending its revenues while no dream materializes. We have seen both possibilities occur time and time again.     Seattle Genetics (SGEN) is now a revenue generating biotech. The firm, which …

Immunomedics (IMMU) and Seattle Genetics (SGEN) announced an exclusive global licensing agreement enabling Seattle Genetics to develop, fund, manufacture, and commercialize Immunomedics’ solid tumor drug candidate IMMU-132. Seattle Genetics accepted to take the responsibility for initiating Phase 3 clinical trial of IMMU-132 for patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and submitting the initial Biologics License Application (BLA) to the FDA for accelerated approval. Also …

Prohost Letter #404 Part 2 Synthetic Biology (2) A Brief History DNA is the software of life. This is how Synthetic Genomics firm, which we believe is now is the leading biotech firm for applied synthetic biology. Synthetic Genomics is still a private firm in spite of that thousands of investors are impatiently waiting for it to turn public and it will. So stay tuned. …

It seems that the global Takeda (TKPYY) has guessed well what it should pick in order to bring the most effective targeted treatments to cancer patients allover the globe. Cancer management has unreservedly changed. What seems now to have become the best treatment choices are those that would accommodate the new wave of extremely promising immunotherapy approaches. To reach its ultimate success, immunotherapy drugs require …

Good news is not always great news that makes a difference. In the drug industry, clinical trial results that demonstrate a drug has fulfilled the requirements of the trials, including the primary and secondary endpoints does not always guarantee that the drug will be successful if and when it hits the market. Experience and follow up on certain firms enables us to see the real …

Meaningful Presentations at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) NEKTAR THERAPEUTICS NKTR-214 Drug Improves Survival and Extends Immunity in cancer Immunotherapy Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) investigational immune-stimulatory cytokine therapy NKTR-214 is in Phase 1/2 trial. At the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) meeting, Nektar announced new preclinical data for NKTR-214, which demonstrate both its activity as a single-agent and its synergistic activity with checkpoint blockade. …

Prohost Letter #394 Part 2 PART 2 - Part 1 of the Prohost letter issue #394 posted on March 31,2016 ended with the review of Ariad Pharmaceuticals (ARIA), one of the biotech firms that have at least one marketed product that we believe have the chance to boost their revenues in the near-future. In this part 2 of the same Prohost Letter, we add other firms …

Prohost Letter #393 IMMUNOTHERAPY - PROHOST PORTFOLIO - NEW PICKS? - A Brief Reminder of the CAR T –TCR Immunotherapy Approaches In this issue we continue our journey inside the territory of cancer immunotherapy. We remind that in the Prohost Letter issue #391, we dealt with the immunotherapy based on genetically engineered T Cells, enabling them to seek out, attack and neutralize cancer cells. The immune system’s T …

Prohost Letter #384 The Assassination of the Biotech Sector The Market (Part 2) On Friday September 18, 2015, the biotechnology sector occupied the news headlines for two different reasons. The first was the sudden unexplicable and unexpected plummeting of the biotech sector. The stocks were flying sky high until modday and suddenly, all the biotech stocks, without exception, took a dive. The second reason was the triumph of …

Prohost Letter #383 The Market - Recent tails about the market and the biotech sector are true thrillers. By true we mean no-fiction. The accounts lack common sense. Professionals' interpretations of the stocks' and of the market's moves are bizarre and misleading. General investors complain only when the stocks' volatility gets out of hand, yet, do not object to the hype, or interferes against the baseless …

Prohost Letter #378 Part 2 2015 ASCO ANNUAL MEETING What a Big Revolution in Oncology! The ASCO meeting projected the huge advancement in the understanding, diagnosing and treating cancer. What looked as if a sudden explosion has brought in the big change, the change was, in fact a slow, deep-rooted evolution, built up over a long period of trial and error with the failures constituting …

Prohost Letter #377 PICKING BIOTECH FIRMS Before Investing in Them Raising the bar in designating small drug developing firms as biotechnology firms has occurred several times since 2011. In that year, many technologies were tremendously enhanced, which enabled them to realize superior goals, i.e., produce safer and more effective breakthrough drugs for chronic debilitating and life-threatening diseases. Prohost Portfolios picks, which have outperformed other industries’ …