Why Intercept Pharmaceuticals Will Likely Pull Back
Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, biopharmaceutical company has received an alarming one-star ranking.
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Intercept and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
Intercept facts
Headquarters (founded) | New York (2002) |
Market Cap | $645.5 million |
Industry | Biotechnology |
Trailing-12-Month Revenue | $2.1 million |
Management | Founder/CEO Mark Pruzanski |
Trailing-12-Month Return on Capital | (48%) |
Cash/Debt | $104.2 million / $0 |
Competitors | Salix Pharmaceuticals |
Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 67% of the 18 members who have rated Intercept believe the stock will underperform the S&P 500 going forward.
Earlier today, one of those Fools, All-Star zzlangerhans, tapped the stock's recent surge as particularly unsustainable:
Intercept's share price jumped from [$33] to [$38] ... apparently because the company was able to price their follow on offering at the market value of [$33]. I've seen stocks rise before after announcing dilution would come at market value, the mirror image of the plunge seen when the new shares are sold below market. The [S]treet interprets this as a vote of confidence by the book runners and their clients who will be buying the new shares. ...
Regardless of the pricing of the secondary, Intercept seems overvalued to me at these levels for reasons I've described previously. Intercept is developing obeticholic acid as a second-line therapy in primary biliary sclerosis for patients who have failed treatment with the standard of care ursodiol. There's no SPA for the trial, the trial endpoints do not seem to me to be rock solid, and topline data isn't expected until Q2 2014 at the earliest. There's no reason for the stock to be so volatile a year ahead of the next significant catalyst except for the desire of traders to use it as a football.
While you can certainly make quick gains in hot biotech stocks, the best investing approach is to choose great companies and stick with them for the long term. The Motley Fool's free report "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich" names stocks that could help you build long-term wealth and retire well, along with some winning wealth-building strategies that every investor should be aware of. Click here now to keep reading.
The article Why Intercept Pharmaceuticals Will Likely Pull Back originally appeared on Fool.com.
Fool contributor Brian Pacampara has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
