Analyst Sees Upside To Outlook At 4 Biotechs

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At least four biotech companies may boost outlooks during the current year, an analyst said Friday.

"There's plenty of room for upside in their guidance," Piper Jaffray's Joshua E. Schimmer said.

The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index is up about 13 percent in the year to date, versus a slight decline for the Standard & Poor's 500.

Schimmer singled out Gilead Sciences, Inc. GILD, Amgen, Inc. AMGN, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ALXN and Biogen Idec Inc BIIB for potentially improved outlooks.

With broad praise for the sector's investment potential, Schimmer said Wall Street tends to undervalue several of its aspects.

Those include potential buybacks, an ability to adjust spending downward to widen profit margins during lean times, and potential upside from acquisitions Schimmer said.

Despite generally strong stock performance in the sector during recent months, "a number of the lofty mid-cap valuations have retracted to more healthy levels," Schimmer said.

Gilead is down on drug price competition with AbbVie, while hedge fund manager Kyle Bass has said recently he plans to challenge patents in the industry as part of a short-selling strategy.

Schimmer said the industry is "worried where the next patent grenade will be lobbed," with Biogen often mentioned as a target.

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Posted In: Analyst ColorAnalyst RatingsJoshua E. SchimmerPiper Jaffray
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