Tony Guglielmin, CFO of Ballard Power Systems Inc. (USA) (BLDP), says the company’s biggest growth opportunity this year and going forward is in telecom. He says the telecom industry is focused on backup power, creating an opportunity for Ballard’s 2- and 5-kilowatt systems.
“We are looking for growth in the 30%-plus range this year,” Guglielmin says. “We are making significant progress in this area and really globally in Indonesia, China, a variety of other markets, South Africa, and more recently, we are starting to see some progress in the United States as well. So telecom backup power is certainly a key part of our business, representing about 30% of our revenue.”
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Guglielmin says Ballard is also seeing strong growth in its stack supplier relationship with Plug Power for material handling application. He says that part of the business grew more than 200% in Q2.
“Plug Power has announced a number of significant transactions recently with Wal-Mart, Central Grocers and Ace Hardware,” Guglielmin says. “With Wal-Mart, I think they announced their seventh site that’s going to be providing full service, and we are providing stacks to Plug for that.”
Edwards Jones Analyst Andy Smith recently upgraded Laclede Group Inc (LG) from a “hold” to a “buy.” He says his improved view on the stock is in part driven by the company’s recent acquisitions under the leadership of CEO Suzanne Sitherwood.
“She really made it known that the company was going to grow through acquisition as well as some other ways, but they really followed through on it, and they bought a company within Missouri last year called MGE,” Smith says. “Then more recently they bought Alabama Gas Company from Energen (EGN). The MGE acquisition essentially doubled the size of Laclede, and then Alabama Gas Company increased the customer base by another 400,000-plus customers.”
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Smith says the acquisitions have transformed Laclede, and that the Alabama Gas Company acquisition further increases the proportion of Laclede’s profits that come from regulated business.
“We think going forward, 95%-plus of profits will come from regulated businesses,” Smith says. “The regulatory environment was adequate with Missouri…Alabama is noted by third parties as one of the most favorable regulatory environments for utilities in the country.”
Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Analyst Hugh Wynne says PG&E Corporation (PCG) could soon become more attractive to investors. He says the company has become “exceedingly unpopular” among investors because of the uncertainty surrounding the penalty for the San Bruno gas pipeline explosion.
“When you look at the shareholder base, it’s a much smaller group of institutions than the group that owns Edison International,” Wynne says. “I think once that fine is levied by the commission and the company issues stock to offset it, the company’s shares will become attractive to a much wider group of investors.”
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With that incident behind it, Wynne says PG&E will “rejoin the universe of investable stocks.” He also says the company should enjoy multiple expansion as that uncertainty is removed.
Robert W. Baird Analyst Ben Kallo says Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) is expected to unveil its Model X in the final production format in September or October. Kallo expects the release to be a catalyst for Tesla’s stock.
“We’ll start getting reviews around the car, which after couple of delays we expect that Tesla has made significant improvements to the vehicle, and we expect the car to receive, from what we can tell now, similar type of reviews to what the Model S did when they came out, which sets up nicely for lots of positive headlines in the news and gets people thinking that the Tesla is not just a one-trick pony, and we’ll start seeing customer delivery sometime next year, probably early Q2,” Kallo said.
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In general, Kallo says demand this year has shaped up better than he expected for Tesla. He says 2014 demand has outstripped supply, and the company plans to bring on additional capacity to meet demand for the Model S next year. He says he expects demand for the Model X to be at least as strong.
“Reservations for the Model X have accelerated faster than they did originally for the Model S, which shows the power of Tesla brand,” Kallo says.
Dr. Daniel Gold, President & CEO of MEI Pharma Inc (MEIP), updated investors on the status of research involving the company’s three wholly owned drug candidates: Pracinostat, ME-344 and PWT143. All are focused on treating patients with acute myeloid leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, or bone marrow cancer, and small cell lung and ovarian cancer respectively, Gold said.
Gold reported that Pracinostat continues to show great promise. The drug is in three trials as part of its Phase II study, he said, measuring single agent and multi-combination responses, as well as responses in older patients who are unable to manage the rigors of chemotherapy.
“We are seeing great overall rapid response,” Gold said. “We believe it’s best-in-class in terms of its prolonged activity in patients.”
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For ME-344, a potent inhibitor of multiple tumor cell lines including chemo-resistant ovarian cancer cells, MEI Pharma is completing its first in-human trial with promising results, Gold said. Of the 21 patients in the trial, 38% showed stable or better results, and one lung cancer patient is now out two years cancer-free, while another seven showed SD, or best response, he said.
PWT143 was acquired from Pathway in September 2013, Gold said. He noted it is a highly selective delta inhibitor that shows potential synergies with Pracinostat for hematologic diseases.
Both Pracinostate and ME-344 have intellectual property protection beyond 2029, Gold said, and the company has $54.7 million cash, with no debt, which should fund research through 2015.
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Dr. Francois Nader, President and CEO of NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NPSP), presented financial projections and plans to increase shareholder value at the 34th Annual Canaccord Genuity Global Growth Conference on Thursday.
Nader forecasted strong financial results from last year’s launch of Gattex/Revestive in second quarter 2013, which continues to deliver significant growth, with year-over-year 2014 growth on track for 200%-plus. This translates to guided gross sales projected between $100 and $110 million by 4Q2014, Nader said.
Nader also announced that the company will expand into its first international market when it begins promoting Gattex/Revestive in the U.K. The company is already working on additional expansion into France, Germany, the Nordics and Argentina, he said.
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Nader also announced that the company is focused on advancing the regulatory process for Natpara, a novel drug on the verge of receiving FDA approval for the treatment of hypoparathyroidism, a rare multidimensional disorder that affects 180,000 people worldwide. He says of the approximately 50,000 patients in the U.S., 40% are uncontrolled with current management protocols, and this uncontrolled population will be the initial focus of the launch.
Finally, Nader said the company is tracking NPSP795, a potential new drug in development for Autosomal Dominant Hypocalcemia, a rare genetic disease caused by mutations of the calcium-sensing receptor gene affecting children and adults. There is no known cure, he said. The drug is currently in Phase II proof-of-concept study, he said.
According to Nader, these activities, combined with royalties from Amgen’s global sales of Sensipar, show a guided projection of net income of $54 million in 2Q2014.
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Roy Burton, CEO for Dialight Plc (LON:DIA), highlighted key drivers that continue to improve company revenues at the 34th annual Canaccord Genuity Global Growth Conference. Of the four primary business groups —components, transportation, signals and lighting — Burton told investors revenue from signals was up by 20%, and lighting now represents 61% of continuing revenue for the first half of 2014.
Lighting is the key growth driver, Burton said, showing an increase in revenues of GBP 43 million, or 46% in the first half of this year over 2013. This has resulted in a basic EPS of 10.5 pence, compared against 12.8 pence for 2013.
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Burton says the company continues to see significant market potential in LED due to regulations for cell phone towers, with 70,000-plus remaining to be converted. In addition, Dialight continues significant day-to-day business with major operators in the industrial and manufacturing sectors.
To sustain this growth, Burton said the company has invested in sales channels as well as manufacturing and expansion capabilities, and have recently had their lighting lab NVLAP-certified. This allows them to bring the lighting products to market faster. Finally, he said Dialight has expanded management at all levels to ensure both top- and bottom-end performance.
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Todd Davis, CEO of Lifelock Inc (LOCK), and Chris Power, CFO, presented the company’s plan to increase shareholder value at the 34th Annual Canaccord Genuity Global Growth conference in Boston last week.
With guided revenues expected to reach nearly $500 million by 2014 year-end, the company has seen 30% year-over-year growth since 2010, Power said.
Power also reported on the company’s unit economics, noting gross margins at 73% year-end 2013, with an overall goal of 75% to 77% long-term. EBITDA is in the double digits, at 11.4% of revenue, where just three years ago it was in the negative, he said.
“We believe in the five-year time frame we can take EBITDA to the 25%-level percentage of income,” Power said.
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CEO Todd Davis introduced a new suite of services for customers: LifeLock Standard, LifeLock Advantage and LifeLock Ultimate Plus. This now makes Lifelock the most comprehensive identity protection service available today, Davis said.
“We’re four to five times the purchase consideration of our next closest competitor,” he said. “This new suite of offerings clearly differentiates us from traditional credit monitoring” as it addresses the potential threat before it happens across all product lines, from credit cards to retirement and investment accounts.
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Georgia Erbez, CFO of Raptor Pharmaceutical Corp. (RPTP), said the company has initiated an 18-month Huntington disease trial. She spoke at the Canaccord Genuity 34th Annual Growth Conference at the Intercontinental Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts.
Raptor Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of therapeutics that treat rare, debilitating and often fatal diseases. Among the areas being explored are nephropathic cystinosis, Huntington’s disease (HD), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), Leigh syndrome and other mitochondrial diseases.
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The company’s Procysbi (cysteamine bitartrate) is on the market and used for the management of nephropathic cystinosis in children and adults. Net product sales for Procysbi for the second quarter were $16.3 million, representing a 34% increase over the first quarter of 2014, and $28.4 million for the six months ended June 30, 2014. Procysbi became commercially available in the U.S. in June 2013 and in Germany in April of this year.
Cystinosis is a rare genetic condition that affects an estimated 3,000 patients worldwide. It is fatal if not treated in early childhood and causes a protein building block called cystine to build up in every cell of the body. The buildup of cystine causes kidney problems, which can cause the body to lose too much sugar, proteins and salts through the urine.
Cystinosis may lead to slow body growth and small stature, weak bones and developing and worsening kidney failure. The product received orphan designation and holds that exclusively in the U.S. and EU.
“We have substantial commercial and pipeline growth,” said Erbez. “We intend to build a company that is capable of sustained, profitable growth.” Erbez added, “global growth is vital to our strategy. We intend to expand our commercial opportunity throughout the U.S. and EU.”
The company is engaged in a genetic screening program partnership with access to 4200 patients with end-stage renal disease, Erbez said. Through the study, they proved their hypothesis that there is an adult-onset form of cystinosis. They anticipate a publication of their finding next year.
The company will continue exploring additional therapeutic uses of its products, and intends to retain global rights to them, Erbez said. Raptor has a market cap of $753.7 million.
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Chris Garabedian, President and CEO Sarepta Therapeutics (SRPT), announced that the Phase IIb clinical study on its first product, eteplirsen, will have its results submitted to the FDA by the end of the year, with a launch slated for mid next-year if approved. He was speaking at the Canaccord Genuity 34th Annual Growth Conference at the Intercontinental Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts.
Sarepta Therapeutics targets therapies for the RNA molecule. The company’s lead drug development program is for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), which affects mostly boys and is 100% fatal, with most passing in their 20s. The Phase II tests for eteplirsen show it slows the decline in walking ability for DMD patients who take a six-minute walk test (6MWT). It also stabilized respiratory muscle function as assessed by pulmonary function tests. It is now in the long-term phase in which patients are continued to be followed for safety and clinical outcomes.
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Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Sarepta has 180 employees, two research facilities and recently purchased a manufacturing plant as it scales up for the potential release of eteplirsen. Garabedian said Sarepta has $284 million in cash and cash equivalents.
The company has produced mid-scale batches of eteplirsen, and will advance that to large scale commercial batches in time for a potential commercial launch next year. It also has started studies with follow-on drugs in its pipeline, which can be modified to adapt to genetic subtypes.
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