Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: LabCorp, Monogram Biosciences, Inc., Pfizer, Quest Diagnostics and Myriad Genetics
2009-06-24 23:08:02 -
Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog.
Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: LabCorp (NYSE: LH : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ), Monogram Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: MGRM : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ), Pfizer (NYSE: PFE : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ), Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ) and Myriad Genetics (Nasdaq: MYGN : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ).
Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter: at.zacks.com/?id=4579 : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fat. ..
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
Monogram Acquired by LabCorp
LabCorp (NYSE: LH : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ) and Monogram Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: MGRM : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ) announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement and plan of merger under which LabCorp will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Monogram in a cash tender offer for $4.55 per share.
The deal has an implied total equity value of approximately $106.7 million, or a total enterprise value of approximately $155 million at March 31, 2009, including net indebtedness. The closing of the acquisition is expected in the third quarter of 2009.
Monogram Biosciences, Inc. is a leading provider of companion diagnostics -- molecular diagnostic products that help guide and target appropriate treatments. The company's focus is on infectious disease and oncology. Lead marketed products include Trofile assay which identifies patients who are eligible for the CCR5 class of HIV drugs, and is the widely-adopted companion diagnostic for Pfizer's (NYSE: PFE : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ) HIV drug Selzentry, PhenoSense and PhenoSense GT HIV tests, which measure individual patient viral drug resistance, thereby enabling physicians to design optimal, individualized treatment plans for each patient.
PhenoSense® and PhenoSense GT® are among the most widely used HIV resistance tests in the market today. Monogram's HIV tests are used routinely by physicians for managing patient therapy and are an integral component of anti-HIV drug development and clinical evaluations for the pharmaceutical industry.
In the oncology front, Monogram's proprietary VeraTag technology has been used to develop a sensitive means to assess HER-2 status in tissue samples and has significant potential as a tool to help guide therapy decisions in breast cancer patients. Based on the VeraTag platform, Monogram has multiple tests in development for measuring a variety of protein markers that may have clinical utility to help guide treatment decisions across a broad range of cancer drugs.
More Deals Expected Following the Transaction
The transaction could have a significant impact for the whole molecular diagnostics industry, in our view. The M&A activity has been very active in the Pharma/Biotech industry for the last a couple of years. However, most of those transactions have been focused on the area of therapeutics.
Molecular diagnostics has enjoyed rapid growth in the past decade due to the breakthrough in genomics and proteomics. Personalized medicine has played a critical and important role to improve therapeutic agents and reduce whole healthcare costs. Europe continues to outpace the US in the area of molecular diagnostics.
In the US, the diagnostic market is relatively fragmented with many small players. Two relatively big players are LabCorp and Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ), which command a majority of the market shares. Small players like Monogram and Myriad Genetics (Nasdaq: MYGN : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. ) are more focused on one or two areas in which they have expertise.
Want more from Zacks Equity Research? Subscribe to the free Profit from the Pros newsletter: at.zacks.com/?id=2649 : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fat. .. .
About Zacks Equity Research
Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term.
Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons.
Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today: at.zacks.com/?id=2677 : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fat. ..
About Zacks
Zacks.com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system; the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter; Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at at.zacks.com/?id=4580 : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fat. .. .
Visit www.zacks.com/performance : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww .. for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
Disclaimer: Past performance does not guarantee future results.
Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.
Zacks.comMark VickeryWeb Content Editor312-265-9380Visit:
www.zacks.com : cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww ..
