AVXL On Track, JNP Snapped Up, BLFS Hits New High, VRAY Catches Eyes

(RTTNews) - The following are some of today's top gainers in the pharma/biotech sector.

1. Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (AVXL)

Gained 43.61% to close Tuesday's (Jul 3) trading at $3.82.

News: The Company has received approval from the Australian Human Research Ethics Committee to initiate its Phase 2b/3, 48-week safety and efficacy trial of ANAVEX2-73 for the treatment of early Alzheimer's disease.

Enrollment in the study, which is designed to enroll 450 patients, is scheduled to be initiated within the next month.

Near-term Catalysts:

-- A phase II clinical trial with ANAVEX2-73 in Rett syndrome is expected to be initiated in the second half of this year. -- A phase II clinical trial of ANAVEX2-73 in Parkinson's disease Dementia is also anticipated to be initiated in the second half of this year.

2. Juniper Pharmaceuticals Inc. (JNP)

Gained 31.61% to close Tuesday's trading at $11.45.

News: The Company is all set to be acquired by Catalent Inc. for $11.50 per share in cash or a total equity value of approximately $139.6 million.

The closing of the transaction is expected to take place in the third quarter of 2018.

3. Axovant Sciences Ltd. (AXON)

Gained 13.08% to close Tuesday's trading at $2.68. But the stock is still down 59% from the price of $6.59 recorded on June 7, 2018.

News: No news

Recent event:

On June 6, 2018, the Company licensed exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize OXB-102, now AXO-Lenti-PD, from Oxford BioMedica. The news sent the stock soaring 165% to $4.64 that day, and it gained another 42% the next day (June 7) to touch an intraday high of $6.59.

AXO-Lenti-PD is an investigational gene therapy for Parkinson's disease. Axovant expects to initiate a Phase 1/2 dose escalation study of AXO-Lenti-PD in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease by the end of 2018.

4. Ardelyx Inc. (ARDX)

Gained 12% to close Tuesday's trading at $4.20.

News: No news

Near-term Catalysts:

-- Submit New Drug Application for Tenapanor to the FDA for irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) in the second half of 2018. -- A phase III trial of Tenapanor for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients with end-stage renal disease who are on dialysis is underway. Top-line data from this clinical trial are expected in 2019.

The Company signed a license agreement with Knight Therapeutics Inc. in March 2018, providing Knight with exclusive rights to commercialize Tenapanor in Canada for the treatment of IBS-C and hyperphosphatemia.

Under the terms of the agreement, Ardelyx is eligible to receive up to CAD 25 million in total payments, including an upfront payment and development and sales milestones, as well as double-digit tiered royalties on net sales.

5. BioLife Solutions Inc. (BLFS)

Gained 11.41% to close Tuesday's trading at $16.70. The stock touched a new 52-week high of $17.75 in intraday trading.

News: No news

Recent event:

-- On July 2, the Company reported preliminary revenue for the three months ended June 30, 2018 and increased its revenue guidance for 2018.

Second quarter 2018 preliminary revenue is $5.2 million, which represents a 103% increase from the second quarter of 2017 and a 36% increase from the first quarter of 2018.

For full year 2018, the Company has now boosted its revenue outlook to a range of $18.5 million to $20 million from its earlier guidance range of $14.5 million to $15.5 million. Revenue in 2017 was $11.02 million.

6. Applied Genetic Technologies Corp. (AGTC)

Gained 10.39% to close Tuesday's trading at $4.25.

News: No news

Clinical Trials & Near-term Catalysts:

-- A phase 1/2 clinical study of investigational gene therapy in patients with X-linked retinoschisis (XLRS), in collaboration with Biogen, is underway. The top-line six-month data from this study is expected to be provided by the end of 2018. -- A phase 1/2 clinical trial evaluating an investigational AAV-based gene therapy for the treatment of X-linked retinitis pigmentosa caused by mutations in the RPGR gene (XLRP), in collaboration with Biogen, is ongoing. The dose escalation portion of this trial is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2019. -- Two parallel Phase 1/2 clinical trials of product candidates for achromatopsia (ACHM) caused by mutations in the two most common ACHM genes, CNGB3 and CNGA3 are ongoing. The dose escalation portion of the CNGB3 trial is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2019.

7. ViewRay Inc. (VRAY)

Gained 10.25% to close Tuesday's trading at $7.85.

The Company manufactures and markets the MRIdian radiation therapy system.

News: No news

Recent event:

-- On May 10, 2018, the Company reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2018.

Net loss for the recent first quarter shrunk to $7.5 million or $0.11 per share from $28.0 million or $0.54 per share for the same period last year. Total revenue was $26.2 million in the first quarter of 2018, up from $1.2 million in 1Q 2017.

The Company anticipates 2018 total revenue to be in the range of $80 million to $90 million. Total revenue in 2017 was $34.0 million.