Why Synageva BioPharma Shares Slumped

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of biopharmaceutical company Synageva BioPharma slumped as low as 11% today after its quarterly results and guidance disappointed Wall Street.

So what: The stock has soared over the past year on strong data from Synageva's lead lysosomal acid lipase deficiency drug sebelipase alfa, but a fourth-quarter loss of $15.1 million combined with downbeat guidance for 2013 is forcing Mr. Market to sober up a bit. While analysts remain largely optimistic about the drug's potential, the prospect of more operating losses -- coupled with a lack of meaningful news catalysts coming up -- gives short-term-oriented traders little reason to stick around.

Now what: For the full-year 2013, management now sees a loss of between $87 million and $97 million.

"[W]e entered 2013 with a strong cash balance which will be thoughtfully and strategically allocated to facilitate the achievement of our goals for 2013 and beyond," CEO Sanj Patel reassured investors.

So while Synageva remains just too speculative for average investors, today's pullback -- the stock is now off about 15% from its 52-week high -- might be an attractive opportunity for biotech-savvy Fools.

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The article Why Synageva BioPharma Shares Slumped originally appeared on Fool.com.

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