Pharmacyclics' Sale Of Blood Cancer Drug To J&J Is A Big Deal

EP Vantage submits:On the back of positive data from lead product PCI-32765, Pharmacyclics (PCYC) has had a good run of late.

By The Burrill Report: By Marie Daghlian

By Brian L. Wilson:It's a very good time for Pharmacyclics (NASDAQ: PCYC) shareholders, who are now sitting on roughly 24% gains from the last week and 50% gains since the start of the year.

By Life Sciences Report:Hematological cancers present special opportunities for investors. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, John McCamant, editor of the Medical Technology Stock Letter, comments on several companies in the hematology/oncology space, describing the challenges and successes that influence investment in the sector. In the case of two companies with very different valuations, McCamant makes his preference clear.

By Prohost Biotech:When on February 24, 2012, we wrote that the Pharmacyclics (PCYC) story is one of only a few in which the power of the firm’s product pipeline overshadows the stock market’s technical influence, we were not hallucinating, as some have claimed.

By Bio Vantage:Ibrutinib is the leading drug candidate and most promising product in the drug pipeline for Pharmacyclics (PCYC). The company is currently conducting seven clinical trials on ibrutinib to expand the use of this drug candidate for CLL (chronic lymphocytic leukemia) and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), both for refractory patients and as frontline therapy.

Pharmacyclics partnered its lead compound PCI-32765 with Janssen (JJ) last week for a cool $975m, including a $150m upfront. However, the market had already priced in a blockbuster deal and the shares fell 15% in response. The landmark deal provides for development costs and commercial profits/losses to be shared, but this means that Pharmacyclics will have to fund significant cash outflows during Phase III studies and the initial commercialisation phase.

Jason Chew submits: With a nearly $2 billion market cap, Incyte (INCY) is currently the most valuable biotech stock with no marketed product. Is it justified? Practically all of the company’s value is wrapped up in two related Janus Kinase (JAK) inhibitors, both of which are partnered.