SGMO Emerges Champion, Mark Your Calendar For ANTH, No Stopping NKTR

(RTTNews) - The following are some of the biotech stocks that made their way onto the Day's Gainers & Losers' list of November 15, 2017.

GAINERS

1. Dicerna Pharmaceuticals Inc. (DRNA)

Gained 13.80% to close Wednesday's (Nov.15) trading at $9.40.

News: No news

The Company is involved in developing subcutaneously delivered ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi)-based pharmaceuticals to treat chronic liver diseases, cardiovascular diseases and viral infectious diseases.

Near-term catalysts:

-- Upon approval by the MHRA in the United Kingdom, a phase I study of DCR-PHXC for primary hyperoxaluria is expected to be conducted in the first quarter of 2018. -- File an IND application in the U.S. and/or CTA in Europe for a second candidate for an undisclosed rare disease involving the liver in the second quarter of 2018. -- File an IND application in the U.S. or CTA in Europe for DCR-HBVS program, which targets HBV directly, at approximately the end of 2018.

2. Sangamo Therapeutics Inc. (SGMO)

Gained 13.57% to close Wednesday's trading at $14.65.

News: The Company announced the treatment of the first patient in its phase 1/2 clinical trial of SB-913 in people with mucopolysaccharidosis type II (MPS II), also known as Hunter syndrome. The study is known as CHAMPIONS study.

This is for the first time, a patient has received a therapy intended to precisely edit the DNA of cells directly inside the body, said Sandy Macrae, CEO of Sangamo Therapeutics.

3. Voyager Therapeutics Inc. (VYGR)

Gained 10.04% to close Wednesday's trading at $13.59.

News: No news

Near-term catalysts:

-- Pivotal phase 2/3 program of VY-AADC01 in advanced Parkinson's disease patients to begin during late 2017 and dosing of the first patient is expected during the first half of 2018. -- Identify a lead clinical candidate for the treatment of Friedreich's ataxia during 2018. -- Advance VY-SOD101 for monogenic form of ALS, VY-HTT01 for Huntington's disease and VY-FXN01 for Friedreich's ataxia towards IND filing in 2018.

4. Anthera Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ANTH)

Gained 9.85% to close Wednesday's trading at $2.23.

News: No news

Near-term catalysts:

-- Interim futility analysis of phase III study of Sollpura for the treatment of Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency caused by cystic fibrosis, dubbed RESULT, is expected next month (December, 2017). -- Top-line data from the RESULT study are expected in Q1, 2018.

5. Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR)

Gained 8.87% to close Wednesday's trading at $43.07. This is the third straight day of gain for the stock.

News: No news

Recent event:

-- On November 11, 2017, the Company announced data from PIVOT-02, a phase 1/2 Study, which is designed to evaluate the combination of Bristol-Myers Squibb's Opdivo with Nektar's investigational medicine, NKTR-214.

In PIVOT-02, the dose-escalation stage of the study, important response rates across all three tumor types - melanoma, renal cell carcinoma and non-small lung cancer - in both PD-L1 positive and PD-L1 negative patients, were observed. There were no treatment discontinuations due to adverse events or study deaths, noted the companies.

6. Global Blood Therapeutics Inc. (GBT)

Gained 8.81% to close Wednesday's trading at $40.75.

News: No news

Recent event:

-- On November 13, 2017, the Company announced the completion of safety review by Independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board for phase III study of Voxelotor (previously called GBT440) for the treatment of sickle cell disease, dubbed HOPE.

Near-term catalysts:

-- Provide an interim update on the ongoing HOPE-KIDS 1 Study at the upcoming American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting in December.

HOPE-KIDS 1 Study is a phase IIa trial of Voxelotor in pediatric patients with sickle cell disease.

-- Announce top-line data for HOPE Study in the first half of 2019.

7. WAVE Life Sciences Ltd. (WVE)

Gained 7.88% to close Wednesday's trading at $26.70.

News: No news

Near-term catalysts:

-- Data from a global phase I clinical trial for WVE-210201 in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) patients amenable to exon 51 skipping are expected in Q3, 2018. -- Top line data from PRECISION-HD program, which includes two phase 1b/2a global clinical trials evaluating WVE-120101 and WVE-120102 for patients with Huntington's disease, are anticipated in 1H 2019.

8. Dova Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (DOVA)

Gained 7.67% to close Wednesday's trading at $24.30.

News: No news

Pipeline:

The Company's lead product candidate is Avatrombopag for the treatment for thrombocytopenia in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD). The compound was tested in two pivotal clinical trials, ADAPT 1 and ADAPT 2, in which all primary and secondary endpoints were met with high statistical significance.

Recent event:

-- On September 22, 2017, the Company announced the submission of NDA for Avatrombopag for the treatment of thrombocytopenia in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD) who are scheduled to undergo a procedure.

LOSERS

1. Acorda Therapeutics Inc. (ACOR)

Lost 39.72% to close Wednesday's trading at $17.00.

News: The Company's investigational drug Tozadenant for Parkinson's disease has been found to be associated with agranulocytosis. There have also been seven cases of sepsis, five of which were fatal, all related to Tozadenant.

Tozadenant is an investigational treatment for the reduction of OFF time in people with Parkinson's disease, and is under phase III testing.

2. Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ACHN)

Lost 17.89% to close Wednesday's trading at $3.03.

News: Johnson & Johnson Innovation-JJDC, Inc., an existing stockholder of Achillion, has offered to sell its entire equity position in Achillion.

3. Vascular Biogenics Ltd. (VBLT)

Lost 11.78% to close Wednesday's trading at $7.68.

News: No news

Recent event:

-- On November 14, 2017, the Company reported third quarter 2017 financial results.

The comprehensive loss for the quarter ended September 30, 2017 widened to $6.5 million or $0.24 per share from $3.2 million or $0.12 per share in the year-ago quarter. No revenues were reported in the comparable quarters.

Near-term catalysts:

-- Initiate a phase III study of VB-111 in ovarian cancer by year-end 2017. -- Top-line results from phase III study of VB-111 in recurrent glioblastoma, dubbed GLOBE, are expected to be available in the first quarter of 2018.

4. TRACON Pharmaceuticals Inc. (TCON)

Lost 8.33% to close Tuesday's trading at $2.75.

News: No news

Recent event:

-- On November 13, 2017, the Company announced that positive results from a phase I clinical trial of its drug candidate TRC102 plus approved chemotherapy drug Fludara in patients with advanced hematologic malignancies were published in the journal Oncotarget.

Near-term catalysts:

-- Interim analysis from phase III trial of TRC105 combined with Votrient for the treatment of advanced angiosarcoma, dubbed TAPPAS, will be conducted in the second half of 2018. -- Complete enrollment of approximately 18 patients in the ongoing phase 1b study of TRC105 in combination with Avastin and chemotherapy for the treatment of non-squamous cell lung cancer in Japan by the end of 2018. -- Report top-line progression free survival data from phase IIb study of TRC105 and Inlyta in patients with advanced or metastatic renal cell carcinoma, dubbed TRAXAR, in early 2018.