Why Best Buy, Celgene, and Three Other Stocks Are Making Headlines Today

The FDA Delivers Good News 

Kamada Ltd (NASDAQ:KMDA) and Shire PLC (ADR) (NASDAQ:SHPG) are trending today after the United States Food and Drug Administration approved an expanded label for GLASSIA, an Alpha-1 Proteinase Inhibitor in humans, marking the first drug treatment for adults with emphysema due to severe Alpha-1 Antitrypsin deficiency that can be self-infused at personal homes given appropriate training. An estimated 100,000 people in the United States have Alpha-1 Antitrypsin deficiency, although fewer than 10% with the deficiency have been diagnosed. In 2010, Kamada and Baxalta entered into an exclusive strategic cooperation agreement for the distribution and licensing of GLASSIA, where Baxalta would be the exclusive distributor of GLASSIA in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.  Recently, Shire has acquired Baxalta. The FDA’s ruling is good news for people who have trouble traveling to healthcare facilities to receive the drug infusion. Of the 766 elite funds we track, two funds owned $3.47 million worth of Kamada Ltd (NASDAQ:KMDA)’s stock and 49 funds held shares of Shire PLC (ADR) (NASDAQ:SHPG) at the end of March. As with all nano-caps and micro-caps, investors should do due-diligence before buying or selling.

Carbylan Rises on Merger Agreement

Carbylan Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:CBYL) opened higher but has plunged in the first hours of trading after the biotech agreed to merge with KalVista Pharmaceuticals. Once the merger is complete, KalVista shareholders will become majority owners of the combined company (with approximately 81% ownership) and Carbylan will be renamed KalVista Pharmaceuticals, Inc. The deal is expected to close in the third or fourth quarter of 2016. Anand Parekh’s Alyeska Investment Group is one of the few funds tracked by us that owns shares of Carbylan, having reported 151,688 shares in its latest 13F filing.

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