MissionIR Small-Cap Investor Blog

Monday, February 3, 2014

Galena Biopharma, Inc. (GALE) Pipeline Products Include Immunotherapy Cancer Treatments

Galena Biopharma is focused on discovering, developing, and commercializing innovative therapies addressing major unmet medical needs using targeted biotherapeutics.

Abstral, the Company’s sublingual formulation of fentanyl citrate, provides statistically significant and rapid relief of breakthrough cancer pain for patients with all types of cancer, providing improvements in pain-related daily function and patient quality of life. Currently in clinical trials, though, is NeuVax (neliepimut-S or E75), one of Galena’s cancer immunotherapy treatments.

The immunotherapy of cancer aims at specifically activating cells of the immune system, especially the so-called cytotoxic T-cells (“killer T-cells”) to seek out and eliminate tumor cells while not harming healthy tissue.

NeuVax works by turning on the immune system. It recruits the main components of the cellular immune system to fight cancer by presentation of a T-cell peptide epitope in the context of the peptide-HLA-T-cell receptor complex–effectively using the patient’s own immune system (i.e., nature’s own defense system against foreign or harmful germs) for the treatment of the cancer.

Folate Binding Protein-E39 (FBP), another Galena treatment, is a targeted vaccine aimed at preventing the recurrence of ovarian, endometrial, and breast cancers. It has very limited tissue distribution and expression in non-malignant tissue making it an ideal immunotherapy target.

The FBP vaccine consists of the E39 peptide derived from the folate binding protein combined with the immune adjuvant granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and is specifically used to treat endometrial and ovarian cancers.

Ideally, a vaccine is specific and should only affect the cancer cells and not attack normal cells. Cancer immunotherapy causes the immune system to make antibodies to one or several specific antigens, and/or make killer T cells to attack cancer cells that express those antigens. Similar to prophylactic vaccines, Galena’s cancer immunotherapies can be delivered with adjuvants, which are designed to boost the immune response.

For more information, visit the website at www.galenabiopharma.com

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Chanticleer Holdings, Inc. (HOTR) Expands Portfolio, Acquires Hooters Pacific Northwest Franchise

Chanticleer Holdings, a minority holder in the privately held parent company of the Hooters® brand Hooters Of America and a franchisee of international Hooters restaurants, has completed its acquisition of Hooters U.S. Pacific Northwest franchise rights and two existing restaurants in Oregon and Washington.

Chanticleer has acquired 100 percent of the shares of Tacoma Wings, LLC and Hooters of Oregon Partners, LLC, owners and operators of the two locations in Portland, Ore., and Tacoma, Wash. Per the agreement, Chanticleer has obtained all leasehold and current franchise rights to the Hooters locations in Oregon and Washington. As part of its ongoing effort to expand its portfolio, Chanticleer management is also evaluating locations around the Portland and Seattle areas for future restaurant openings.

In addition, Chanticleer reports that it has acquired Chef John Tesar’s fine dining seafood restaurant, Spoon Bar & Kitchen, located in Dallas, Texas. Chanticleer intends to expand the Spoon brand by stretching its healthier seafood menu into a new, fast-casual dining concept.

“We are starting off the new year successfully completing both of these acquisitions and more importantly adding three operating restaurants to our portfolio. The Pacific Northwest provides strategic opportunities to expand the footprint of our brands,” Chanticleer chairman and CEO Mike Pruitt stated in the news release.

Chanticleer also owns and operates American Roadside Burgers and owns a majority interest in Just Fresh restaurants in the United States.

For more information, visit www.chanticleerholdings.com

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Friday, January 31, 2014

CytRx Corp. (CYTR) Announces Pricing of $75M Public of Common Stock at $6.50 per Share

CytRx, a biopharmaceutical research and development company specializing in oncology, today issued a news release pricing its previously announced underwritten public offering. The company is now offering 11.5 million common shares at a public offering price of $6.50 a share. That is intended for gross proceeds of around $75 million, before the deduction of underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by CytRx are taken into consideration.

The net proceeds of the public offering will be used to fund clinical trials of the company’s drug candidate, aldoxorubicin, as well as for general corporate ends. The underwriters have been given the option of being able to purchase an additional 1.725 million shares of common stock for 30 days. It is expected that the offering will close on or around Wednesday, February 5, 2014.

Jeffries LLC is serving as the offering’s sole book-running manager while Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., Aegis Capital Corp., and H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC are functioning as co-lead managers for the offering’s duration.

CytRx is offering the shares pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3, including a base prospectus, which had been filed with and now declared effective by the SEC. A preliminary prospectus supplement related to the offering was filed with the SEC on January 30, 2014, and a final prospectus supplement related to the offering will be filed with the commission sometime today.

When available, copies of the final prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus can be found at: http://www.sec.gov.

For more information on CytRx, visit: www.cytrx.com/

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DryShips, Inc. (DRYS): Macros Look Strong, But Liquidity Can Pose a Threat

DryShips felt the impact of fluctuating dry bulk shipping spot rates, as 33% of the company’s fleet is exposed to spot rates. Dry bulk shipping rates fell this month due to several factors such as:

1. This year, the Chinese New Year falls on January 31, and because of the holiday, most of China and Vietnam will be shut down from January 29 through February 6. Due to the holidays, shipping to Asian countries slowed down for the month of January, which consequently impacted shipping rates. It is a seasonal trend, and the shipments are expected to improve beginning next month.

2. Another cause for the price fall is coal shipment suspension in Colombia, from where Europe imports 20% of its coal. Colombia passed a rule requiring coal producers to build a direct ship loading facility at the port instead of using cranes and barges in order to reduce pollution. Loading facilities are expected to be installed by March this year, which will normalize the shipment.

Since mainly short-term factors are influencing spot prices, the situation will improve once these situations normalize. The outlook for dry bulk trade is expected to be positive this year. In 2014, dry bulk export demand is expected to grow 8% compared to fleet growth of 6%, so demand is expected to exceed the supply of vessels which will reverse the trend.

With rising global dry bulk trade, shipping spot rates will also improve, and DryShips is in a good position to take advantage of the rising rates due to its exposure to spot rates. Out of its 24 Panamax vessels, 16 are operating on the spot rate basis. Its two Supramax vessels are also operating on the spot rate basis.

Most of the company’s Capesize vessels are currently in long-term contracts on a fixed rate basis, and the majority of these vessels’ contract periods will end in 2018. Operating on a fixed rate basis will help the company in the current low spot price scenario, as Capesize vessel spot prices fell about 50% this month compared to last month. The current Capesize spot price is about $11,000, but its 10 vessels are operating at price of more than $20,000. When shipping spot rates are falling, using a fixed rate is an advantage for the company, but as prices are expected to rise in coming months, the company will only receive the benefits of rising prices from its Panamax and Supramax vessels.

Spot rates’ impact on other dry shippers

DryShips has two main competitors, Genco Shipping & Trading (GNK) and Diana Shipping (DSX). Spot rate volatility will have a different impact on each of these companies. Genco has 53 vessels and 42 of these vessels operate on spot rates or link to the spot rate. These 42 vessels include 9 Capesize, 8 Panamax, 12 Supramax, and 13 Handysize and Handymax vessels. Therefore, volatility in spot rates for all five classes of vessels will affect the company’s revenue. On the other hand, all 36 of Diana Shipping’s vessels operate on the fixed rate basis, providing the company with stable revenue, despite movement in the spot rate prices.

DryShips, on the other hand, is nimble enough to be able to adjust to price volatility since its Capesize vessels are in fixed rate contracts, while Panamax and Supramax operate on spot rates.

New equity offering to improve financial position

DryShips has shown intentions to resume its $200 million market price equity offering program, which it suspended in the beginning of December last year. The company stated that the reason behind this offering is to repay some or all of this year’s mandatory debt repayment of $150 million. DryShips already issued 6,892,233 equity shares under the program which generated gross proceeds of about $24.1 million. With the remaining $175 million, analysts are expecting the company to issue about 37 million shares. With the potential share offerings, dilution may have a negative impact on the share price over the short-term.

However, additional equity will help the company improve its liquidity position. At the end of the third quarter in 2013, the company had $678.6 million of cash and cash equivalents. The additional proceeds through equity sales will further strengthen the company’s financial position.

Potential events can change the company’s liquidity position

The company’s four new Panamax vessels are expected to be delivered this year. However, the company stated that the vessel developing company, Rongsheng, is facing difficulties, and there is a high probability that the vessels may not be delivered. If delivery occurs, the company has to allocate about $98 million for the remaining contracts.

Also, the company’s convertible notes worth $700 million are going to mature in December this year. The company suggested that it will try to extend maturity by refinancing through the note holders, but even if it doesn’t refinance due to additional equity sales, the company will be in a better position to redeem the notes.

Conclusion

Due to short-term factors, shipping rates are currently on the lower side, but the rates are expected to rise due to positive dry bulk trade outlook. Since almost one-third of its fleet is exposed to the spot rates, DryShips will reap the benefits. However, the company’s liquidity position may change in the coming months due to events like new vessel deliveries and maturing convertible notes. The company has also stated its intention to resume its equity sales, which will further increase dilution risk.

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YOU On Demand (YOD) Announces Expanded Relationship with Disney to Offer Mobile Movies On Demand in China

Leading Chinese multi-platform entertainment and video-on-demand company YOU On Demand Holdings, Inc. has announced the expansion of its cooperation to offer feature films from Disney Media Distribution through the YOU On Demand mobile service.

Through YOU On Demand, Disney library titles like “Alice in Wonderland” and “Pirates of the Caribbean” will now be available, and popular Marvel library titles will be available through the company’s Subscription Video On Demand (SVOD) package. New releases like “Thor: The Dark World” and “Saving Mr. Banks” will also be available through the company’s Transactional Video On Demand (TVOD) service.

“We are very proud to announce our expanded partnership with Disney as we continue to bring the best in entertainment to mobile users in China,” YOU On Demand Chairman Shane McMahon stated in the news release. “Disney films define quality family entertainment, and we’re thrilled that YOU On Demand will be showcasing Disney content to the world’s largest media audience. This partnership marks the next step in YOU On Demand’s commitment to provide rich and diverse content to customers anytime and anywhere on a wide variety of platforms, including mobile, digital cable, IPTV, Over-the-Top and online.”

With the addition of Disney content, YOU On Demand will continue pursuing the expansion of its mobile distribution presence in China. The company will add Disney titles to its current Hollywood lineup through the newly launched mobile app YOU Cinema, as per a recently announced distribution agreement with Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider and the third largest smartphone manufacturer in the world. The YOU Cinema app currently comes preloaded on Huawei Mate smartphones.

For more information about YOU On Demand, visit www.yod.com

CYREN (CTCH) Announces Availability of Cloud-Based Web Security Service

CYREN, previously operating as Commtouch®, a prominent internet security solutions supplier to the world’s largest service providers and software vendors, announced that CYREN WebSecurity, the company’s first service launch through its robust cloud infrastructure, has been made commercially available. CYREN is now capable of immediately partnering with service providers and software vendors to provide end users secure browsing, at any time, from any device, anywhere.

An opportunity exists for the company in the cloud-based Secure Web Gateway as a Service market to serve businesses with an existing exposure to potentially catastrophic Internet security risks. CYREN WebSecurity is perfectly suited to cater to the tremendous growth in the Security as a Service markets because of its ability to deliver low cost and high utility of cloud-based applications. The Security as a Service market will continue to experience impressive growth driven by BYOD trends, an increasingly mobile workforce, and the management and accessibility of information assets beyond the boundaries of traditionally secured network perimeters.

CYREN WebSecurity has a unique structure capable of thriving in this new way of working, enabling CYREN partners to rapidly capture the fast-growing market opportunity through the availability of a comprehensive solution for roaming users, smartphones and tablets, including BYOD. The company’s GlobalView™ Cloud infrastructure, its patented Recurrent Pattern Detection™ technology, and an industry leading transaction base are all valuable factors in the delivery of a unique cloud-based Secure Web Gateway service. Easy to set up and manage, it provides an intuitive customer experience that delivers on the SaaS promise of doing more for less.

“We are excited to see the emergence of state-of-the-art cloud based protection for mobile and roaming users,” said Tom O’Brien, CEO of MXSweep, a leading European provider of cloud-based security services and CYREN design partner. “CYREN WebSecurity will help MXSweep deliver the easy to consume and best of breed cloud based security that our customers expect.”

“Arming partners with the ability to rapidly deploy new security services throughout any ecosystem, CYREN WebSecurity opens up significant new revenue streams,” said Brett Wilson, vice president of products at CYREN. “CYREN WebSecurity provides our partners with the speed, accuracy and real-time insight that their end customers demand without the unnecessary burdens of additional capital expense and expert human resources. We see CYREN’s robust cloud infrastructure as a true catalyst for growth – and today’s launch of CYREN Web Security is the latest step in harnessing its full capabilities.”

For further information, please visit www.cyren.com

Thursday, January 30, 2014

VolitionRx Ltd. (VNRX) Dubbed “Bright Biotech” by Wall St. Cheat Sheet Contributor

VolitionRx was one of two companies recently highlighted in an article published in Wall St. Cheat Sheet that emphasized the long-term impact of positive news and/or achievements in the biotechnology industry.

“One way to offset the current market uncertainty is to look for news driven stocks that appear to be paving the way for future growth. This is especially true in the biotechnology sector where one positive news announcement can help pave the way for years of innovation. Two companies that have released recent positive announcements include Medivation (NASDAQ:MDVN) and VolitionRx (VNRX.OB). Investors should keep their eyes on both of these promising companies.”

To read the full article visit http://wallstcheatsheet.com/stocks/2-biotechnology-stocks-with-a-bright-future.html/

Contributor Tom Meyer starts with a run-down of Medivation, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the rapid development of novel therapies to treat serious diseases, such as cancer, for which there are limited treatment options. The company’s flagship product, XTANDI, is FDA-approved for the treatment of patients with metastatic castration-related prostate cancer who have previously been treated with chemotherapy.

As an introduction to life sciences company VolitionRx, Meyer describes the company’s goal to make non-invasive, simple-to-use cancer blood tests similar to the tests that are currently available for diabetics. VolitionRx’s R&D is currently centered in Belgium as the company is initially focused on marketing its products in Europe due to an easier path to regulatory approval there. The company’s primary focus at this time is on the colorectal cancer market, though its technology has the potential to be expanded into other cancers.

Meyer breaks-down into layman’s terms the science behind VolitionRx’s cancer blood tests, as well as the company’s ongoing clinical activities before concluding that:

“The colorectal cancer market is in need of much better diagnostics. The current available options include colonoscopies (invasive and expensive) and FIT/FOBT faecal-based tests (unpleasant and don’t screen for pre-cancerous polyps). If VolitionRx can successfully get some of its products to market, the company should see a dramatic climb in its share price. Also, investors should begin to see a run-up in the company’s share price as VolitionRx gets closer to revenue production.”

For more information, visit www.volitionrx.com

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