LONDON -- The shares of�Carpetright� (LSE: CPR ) rose 2.4% to 265 pence in early afternoon trading yesterday after the FTSE 250 mid cap revealed like-for-like U.K. sales had jumped 5.6%.
Carpetright, the biggest seller of carpets and floor coverings in Britain, met market expectations by confirming gross margins were likely to improve by 0.2% this year.
The company's performance in the rest of Europe was less impressive, however, with total sales declining 10.2%, mostly due to "deteriorating economic conditions" in the Netherlands.
After suffering a disastrous blow to margins following the housing crisis, Carpetright said it would continue its plans to refurbish its U.K. stores, increase its product range, and focus on digital media marketing.
Chief executive Darren Shapland commented:
Excluding the expected contraction in sales from the wholesale business, our core U.K. retail business would have reported like-for-like sales growth of 6.7% for the period. Whilst the recent cold spring weather has been positive to our sales, we believe this performance reflects the continued success of our program of self-help initiatives.
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Greenlight Capital Re Ltd.(GLRE)
Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, operates in the property and casualty reinsurance business in the United States, Europe, the Caribbean, and internationally. The company?s frequency business includes contracts containing smaller losses emanating from multiple events and enables the clients to increase their own underwriting capacity; and severity business consists of contracts with the potential for significant losses emanating from one event or multiple events. It offers personal and commercial property, general and marine liability, motor liability, motor physical damage, professional liability, financial, health, medical malpractice, and workers? compensation reinsurance products. Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. sells its products primarily through reinsurance brokers. The company was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Grand Cayman, the Cayman Islands.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By MONEYMORNING]
They pitched their research hard to client David Einhorn, the billionaire founder of hedge fund Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd (Nasdaq: GLRE). Shortly thereafter Einhorn started shorting the stock.
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Tompkins Financial Corp (TMP)
Tompkins Financial Corporation (Tompkins) is a bank holding company. The Company is a locally oriented, community-based financial services company that offers an array of products and services, including commercial and consumer banking, leasing, trust and investment management, financial planning and wealth management, insurance, and brokerage services. The Company operates in two segments: banking and financial services. Banking services consist primarily of attracting deposits from the areas served by the Company�� banking subsidiaries��45 banking offices and using those deposits to originate a variety of commercial loans, agricultural loans, consumer loans, real estate loans, and leases in those same areas. Financial services activities consist of the results of the Company�� trust, financial planning and wealth management services, broker-dealer services, and insurance and risk management operations. On June 1, 2011, its subsidiary, Tompkins Insurance Agencies, Inc. (Tompkins Insurance), acquired Olver & Associates, Inc. (Olver), a property and casualty insurance agency. In August 2012, it acquired VIST Financial Corp.
The Company maintains a portfolio of securities, such as obligations of the United States Government agencies and the United States Government sponsored entities, obligations of states and political subdivisions thereof, and equity securities. Tompkins provides a variety of financial services to individuals and small business customers.
Commercial Services
The Company�� subsidiary banks provide financial services to corporations and other business clients. Lending activities include loans for a variety of business purposes, including real estate financing, construction, equipment financing, accounts receivable financing, and commercial leasing. Other commercial services include deposit and cash management services, letters of credit, sweep accounts, credit cards, purchasing cards, Internet-based account services, and remote deposit ser! vices.
Retail Services
The Company�� subsidiary banks provide a variety of retail banking services, including checking accounts, savings accounts, time deposits, individual retirement accounts (IRA) products, brokerage services, residential mortgage loans, personal loans, home equity loans, credit cards, debit cards and safe deposit services. Retail services are accessible through a variety of delivery systems, including branch facilities, automated teller machines (ATMs), voice response, Internet banking, and remote deposit services.
Trust and Investment Management Services
The Company offers a range of financial services to customers, including trust and estate services, investment management, and financial and insurance planning. These services are offered through Tompkins Investment Services (TIS), a division of Tompkins Trust Company, and AM&M. Tompkins Financial Advisors has office locations at all three of the Company�� subsidiary banks, and provides a range of money management services, including investment management, trust and estate, financial and tax planning, as well as life, disability and long-term care insurance services.
Broker-Dealer Services
AM&M operates a broker-dealer subsidiary, Ensemble Financial Services, Inc. Ensemble Financial Services, Inc. is an outsourcing company for financial planners and investment advisors.
Insurance Services
The Company provides property and casualty insurance services and employee benefits consulting through Tompkins Insurance. Tompkins Insurance is an independent insurance agency. Tompkins Insurance has automated systems for record keeping, claim processing and coverage confirmation, and can provide insurance pricing comparisons from a range of insurance companies. Tompkins Insurance provides employee benefits consulting to employers in Western and Central New York, assisting them with their medical, group life insurance and group disability in! surance. ! In addition to its seven offices, Tompkins Insurance shares several offices with The Bank of Castile and The Trust Company. AM&M also provides insurance services for financial planning and wealth management clients, offering risk management plans using life, disability and long-term care insurance products.
Subsidiary Activities
The Company�� subsidiaries include: three wholly owned banking subsidiaries, Tompkins Trust Company (the Trust Company), The Bank of Castile, and The Mahopac National Bank (Mahopac National Bank); AM&M Financial Services, Inc., doing business as Tompkins Financial Advisors, a wholly owned and an investment advisor (AM&M), and a wholly owned insurance agency subsidiary, Tompkins Insurance. AM&M and the trust division of the Trust Company provides an array of investment services under the Tompkins Financial Advisors division, including investment management, trust and estate, financial and tax planning, as well as life, disability and long-term care insurance services. The Trust Company has a full-service office in Cortland, New York and a full-service office in Auburn, New York. Both of these offices are located in counties contiguous to Tompkins County. The Trust Company operates 15 banking offices, including two limited-service banking offices in the counties of Tompkins, Cortland, Cayuga and Schuyler, New York.
The Bank of Castile is a New York State-chartered commercial bank and conducts its operations through its 15 banking offices, in towns situated in and around the areas commonly known as the Letchworth State Park area and the Genesee Valley region of New York State. The Bank of Castile�� lending portfolio includes loans to the agricultural industry. The Mahopac National Bank (Mahopac National Bank) operates 15 banking offices, including one limited-service office in counties north of New York City. The 15 banking offices include five full-service offices in Putnam County, New York, three full-service offices in Dutchess County,! New York! , and six full-service offices, and one limited-service office in Westchester County, New York.
Tompkins Insurance Agencies, Inc. (Tompkins Insurance) offers property and casualty insurance to individuals and businesses primarily in Western and Central New York. AM&M Financial Services, Inc. (AM&M) offers financial services through three operating companies: AM&M Planners, Inc., which provides fee-based financial planning and wealth management services for corporate executives, small business owners and high-net-worth individuals; Ensemble Financial Services, Inc., an independent broker-dealer and outsourcing company for financial planners and investment advisors, and Ensemble Risk Solutions, Inc., which creates customized risk management plans using life, disability and long-term care insurance products. Tompkins Capital Trust I and Sleepy Hollow Capital Trust I are Delaware statutory business trusts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Fredrik Arnold]
Tompkins Financial Corp. (TMP) netted $44.97 based on a mean target price estimate from three analysts combined with projected annual dividend less broker fees. The Beta number showed this estimate subject to volatility 27% less than the market as a whole.
10 Best Growth Stocks To Invest In Right Now: NetQin Mobile Inc. (NQ)
NetQin Mobile Inc. operates as a software-as-a-service provider of consumer-centric mobile Internet services focusing on security and productivity in the People?s Republic of China and internationally. It provides a suite of mobile Internet services that protect mobile users from security threats and enhance their productivity. It offers mobile security services, including mobile malware scanning, Internet firewall, account and communication safety, anti-theft, performance optimization, hostile software rating and reporting, and other services to protect users from mobile malware threats, data theft, and privacy intrusion. The company also provides mobile productivity services comprising screening incoming calls, filtering unwanted spam, SMS messages, protecting communication privacy, and managing calendar activities, as well as cloud-side synchronization of personal data, including address books, text messages, and calendars to enhance time and relationship management. In addition, it provides personalized intelligent cloud services that utilize synchronized user information to provide tailored user experience and extend the functionalities of its core services. Further, the company offers security forums and download services for third-party mobile applications. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Beijing, the People?s Republic of China.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Belinda Cao]
Oberweis China Opportunities Fund (OBCHX), the best-performing U.S.-based fund investing in Chinese stocks, said Internet companies from NQ Mobile Inc. (NQ) to Qihoo 360 Technology Co. (QIHU) will extend a rally after jumping more than three-fold this year.
- [By James E. Brumley]
What do Joe's Jeans Inc. (NASDAQ:JOEZ) and NQ Mobile Inc. (NYSE:NQ) have in common? Well, nothing ... at least on the surface. JOEZ is, as the name would imply, a denim company, while NQ, as the name would vaguely suggest, a mobile internet service provider. There is one common element between the two companies right now, however, at least in my eyes ... both are likely to be at the beginning of major (read "trade-worthy") bounces.
- [By Paul Ausick]
Chinese Internet service provider NQ Mobile Inc. (NYSE: NQ) was attacked by short selling firm Muddy Waters LLC in late October and the company�� share price tumbled from a 52-week high of $25.90 to less than $9.00. The company has been clawing its way back up ever since, and got another boost on Friday after independent equity analysis firm Wedge Partners tweeted that NQ Mobile has been able to restore the company�� games to the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) App Store.
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Sovran Self Storage Inc.(SSS)
Sovran Self Storage, Inc. operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT). It engages in the acquisition, ownership, and management of self-storage properties in the United States. The company?s self-storage properties offer storage space to residential and commercial users, as well as offer outside storage for automobiles, recreational vehicles, and boats. As of February 15, 2007, it owned and managed 328 properties, consisting of approximately 20.3 million net rentable square feet in 22 states. Sovran Self Storage has elected to be treated as a REIT for federal income tax purposes and would not be subject to income tax to the extent it distributes at least 90% of taxable income to its stockholders. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Williamsville, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rich Duprey]
Self-storage REIT�Sovran Self Storage (NYSE: SSS ) announced today its second-quarter dividend of $0.53 per share, a 10% increase from the payout it made to investors last quarter of $0.48 per share.
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: 22nd Century Group Inc (XXII)
22nd Century Group, Inc. (22nd Century Group), incorporated on September 12, 2005, is a holding company. The Company�� wholly owned subsidiary, 22nd Century Limited, LLC (22nd Century Ltd), which is a plant biotechnology company. The Company�� products include X-22 Smoking Cessation Aid, Modified Risk Cigarettes, BRAND A Cigarettes and BRAND B Cigarettes. On January 25, 2011, 22nd Century Limited, LLC (22nd Century Ltd) completed a reverse merger transaction (the Merger) with 22nd Century Group, and as a result, 22nd Century Ltd became a wholly owned subsidiary of 22nd Century Group, which continues to operate the business of 22nd Century Ltd. the Company�� drug application for X-22 was cleared by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July 2011. The Company�� subsidiary, Goodrich Tobacco Company, LLC (Goodrich Tobacco), had introduced two cigarette brands, RED SUN and MAGIC, into the United States marketed during the year ended December 31, 2011. In December 2013, 22nd Century Group Inc acquired an undisclosed manufacturing facility located in Mocksville, North Carolina. Effective December 11, 2013, 22nd Century Group Inc acquired NASCO Specialty Brands LLC.
X-22 is a tobacco-based botanical medical product for use as a smoking cessation therapy. X-22 is a prescription-only kit consists of very low nicotine (VLN) cigarettes made from its tobacco. The therapy protocol allows the patient to smoke its VLN cigarettes without restriction over the six-week treatment period to facilitate the goal of the patient quitting smoking by the end of the treatment period. In 2011, Biotech Crops were planted in 29 countries on 395 million acres (160 million hectares).
The Company competes with Pfizer Inc., GlaxoSmithKline PLC, Novartis International AG, Reynolds American Inc, Philip Morris USA Inc., Reynolds American Inc., Lorillard Inc., Commonwealth Brands, Inc., Liggett Group LLC, Vector Tobacco Inc., Star Scientific Inc, Philip Morris International Inc., British! American Tobacco, JT International SA, Imperial Tobacco Group PLC and China National Tobacco Corporation.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Peter Graham]
Small cap stocks Chromadex Corp (OTCMKTS: CDXC) and 22nd Century Group Inc (OTCBB: XXII) are, one way or the other, focused on natural products and have been getting some extra attention lately. Moreover, one of these stocks have been the subject of a disclosed investor awareness campaign. Keeping that in mind, are these two small cap stocks natural winners for investors? Here is a quick look:
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Agrium Inc.(AGU)
Agrium Inc., together with its subsidiaries, produces and markets agricultural nutrients, industrial products, and specialty products worldwide, as well as involves in the retail supply of agricultural products and services in North and South Americas. The company?s Retail segment markets crop nutrient products, including nitrogen, phosphate, potash, sulphur, and micronutrients; crop protection products, such as herbicides, fungicides, adjuvants, and insecticides; and seeds. This segment also offers agronomic services, as well as product application, soil and leaf tissue testing and analysis, and crop scouting services. This segment operates 1,192 outlets in the United States, Canada, Australia, Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay. The company?s Wholesale segment produces, markets, and distributes nitrogen, phosphate, potash, sulphate, and other crop nutrient products for agricultural and industrial customers. This segment also owns and operates facilities that upgrade ammonia t o other nitrogen products, such as urea, nitric acid, and ammonium nitrate, as well as provides Rainbow plant food products. Agrium?s Advanced Technologies segment produces and markets controlled-release crop nutrients and micronutrients for the agriculture, specialty agriculture, professional turf, horticulture, and consumer lawn and garden markets. The company was formerly known as Cominco Fertilizers Ltd. and changed its name to Agrium Inc. in 1995. Agrium Inc. was founded in 1931 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Russ Krull]
Agrium (NYSE: AGU ) funded some seeds for future growth with 10- and 30-year paper totaling $1 billion. According to the company's press release, the money will be used to fund planned capital expenditures. No specifics for the capex were provided.
- [By Paul Ausick]
BPC had been one of two major marketing groups for potash. The other, Canpotex, is based in Canada and markets potash production from Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. (NYSE: POT), Agrium Inc. (NYSE: AGU) and the Canadian arm of Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS). The two marketing organizations (cartels?) controlled about two-thirds of the world�� production of potash and had for years maintained high prices for potash by limiting production.
- [By Chris Damas]
Uralkali is special in that it is a pure potash mining and selling company unlike competitors, who often sell other fertilizers or chemicals. Uralkali's results are instructive, and the numbers released this morning were particularly so. They were ugly. And they could be a glimpse of what kind of potash numbers members of the Canadian potash marketing agency Canpotex could be facing in the future, the members other than Potash Corp being Mosaic and Agrium Inc. (AGU).
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Xinyuan Real Estate Co Ltd(XIN)
Xinyuan Real Estate Co. Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in residential real estate development in China. The company?s residential projects comprise various residential buildings that include multi-layer apartment buildings, sub-high-rise apartment buildings, or high-rise apartment buildings; auxiliary services and amenities, such as retail outlets, leisure and health facilities, kindergartens, and schools; and small scale residential properties. It also offers property management and other real estate related services, such as landscaping and installing intercom systems. In addition, the company leases properties, including an elementary school, a basement, three clubhouses, five kindergartens, and parking facilities. As of December 31, 2010, it had 21 completed projects with a total gross floor area (GFA) of approximately 2,049,460 square meters and comprising a total of 23,324 units, as well as 8 projects under construction with a total GFA of 1,804,946 sq uare meters. It primarily operates in seven tier II cities, comprising Hefei, Jinan, Kunshan, Suzhou, Zhengzhou, Xuzhou, and Chengdu. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People?s Republic of China.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Benjamin Shepherd]
In the meantime though, I would avoid betting on a hard Chinese landing, a bet that has cost many investors dearly over the past few years. I would, however, avoid most of the leading Chinese real estate developers such as China Vanke (OTC: CVKEF) and Xinyuan Real Estate (NYSE: XIN) which are almost entirely dependent on the domestic markets.
- [By Tim Brugger]
Having completed the repurchase of approximately $12.6 million of the $20 million share buyback program started last year, Xinjuan Real Estate's (NYSE: XIN ) board of directors has authorized the repurchase of an additional $60 million of outstanding stock, the company announced today.
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: WidePoint Corp (WYY)
WidePoint Corporation (WidePoint), incorporated on May 30, 1997, is a provider of customized technology-based products and solutions to both the government sector and commercial markets. The Company operates in three segments: Communications Management, Cybersecurity Solutions, and Consulting Services and Products. WidePoint, through its wholly owned subsidiaries iSYS LLC (iSYS) and WidePoint Solutions Corp. (WSC), utilizes its experience working with government and commercial enterprises to develop solutions that take the pain out of managing wireless and wireline telecommunications (telecom) expenses and devices. Through its wholly owned subsidiaries Operational Research Consultants (ORC), Protexx Technology Corporation (PROTEXX), and Advanced Response Concepts Corporation (ARCC), delivers compliant identity management solutions. The Company offers a range of information technology (IT) consulting services and products to support its clients��IT needs.
Communications Management
The Company offers a Bands of Minutes approach that takes advantage of bulk savings for its clients by utilizing all available voice, data and message plans offered by the carriers. It provides a variety of reports that provide data for ongoing periodic reviews and strategic decision-making. It also provides secured solutions for its clients��telecom assets.
Cybersecurity Solutions
WidePoint�� wholly owned subsidiary, ORC, is certified by the federal government to facilitate public access to the services offered by government agencies, including on-line access to computers for purposes of reviewing, retrieving, providing, and exchanging information. Its digital certificate credentials are authorized to provide trusted individual or business identity information for use by the Department of Defense (DoD), FirstGov, General Services Administration (GSA) and participating federal government agencies. Its digital certificate credential services include the DoD External Cer! tificate Authority, Access Certificates for Electronic Services, and the General Services Administration Shared Service Provider. It also provide an analysis of an organization�� business and technical policies across application and data resources for the implementation of various devices, such as smart cards, security tokens, cell phones and personal computers, and implementing these capabilities by incorporating higher levels of automated infrastructure.
Consulting Services and Products
The Company offers IT architecture and planning services to ensure that it clients get the most from their IT investments. Its system integration services team provides its clients with the creative and technical expertise needed to execute projects of any size. The Company specializes in the areas of Infrastructure management, Applications management and IT strategic planning. iSYS provides a range of IA support services to help its customers to protect and defend information and information systems by ensuring confidentiality, integrity, authentication, availability, and non-repudiation. In addition, its IA services include strategic risk analysis and management support that includes physical security, reliability, continuity of operations planning, and support for other enterprise governance issues, such as privacy, compliance, audits and disaster recovery. Its IA services include Certification and Accreditation; Security Architecture Design; System Security Planning; Security Risk Assessment and Mitigation Planning; Vulnerability Testing and Remediation; Customizable IA plans and processes to correspond to customer needs, and Continuity of Operations Planning. Its support services address on-going enhancements to existing IT systems along with developing new IT systems that incorporate the evolution of long-term advanced hardware and software technologies.
The Company competes with Avalon Global Solutions, Inc., Profitline, Rivermine, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Northrop G! rumman Co! rporation, EDS, Unisys, Computer Services Corporation, Science Applications International Corporation and Manpower.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Bryan Murphy]
If you're a fan of, or investor in, WidePoint Corporation (NYSEMKT:WYY), then be warned now that what you're about to read regarding WYY is likely to irritate you. Nothing personal; it's just a reality check. Here goes - WidePoint shares are very likely to be at the onset of a sizeable pullback. [Insert boos and hisses here.]
- [By Bryan Murphy]
If you're reading this, then odds are you already know that small caps WidePoint Corporation (NYSEMKT:WYY), CytRx Corporation (NASDAQ:CYTR), and Elephant Talk Communications Corp. (NYSEMKT:ETAK) are among the recent big winners from the small cap stock realm. ETAK is up 100% since the end of October, largely spurred by encouraging numbers in its third-quarter results. CYTR shares have rallied more than 150% in just the past three days on the heels of an announcement that a cancer drug the biotech company is developing has shown wonderful Phase 2 results. And, WYY has advanced 93% over the past month or so, thanks to Q3's earnings announcement, though the trading public - and then the media - certainly took the ball and ran with it.
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Sigma Labs Inc (SGLB)
Sigma Labs, Inc., incorporated on December 23, 1985, has two wholly-owned subsidiaries, B6 Sigma, Inc. and Sumner & Lawrence Limited (dba Sumner Associates). B6 Sigma, Inc. (B6 Sigma) develops precision manufacturing solutions and advanced materials technologies, as well as Reasearch and Development solutions for first-tier integrators and other commercial firms worldwide. Sumner Associates provide consultants to Federal government and commercial clients seeking productive solutions for development technologies. As of December 31, 2012, the Company is engaged in a range of activities, in which it seek to commercialize technologies and products in the industry sectors, which include in process quality assurance for manufacturing; aerospace and defense manufacturing; additive manufacturing; active protection systems for defending light armored vehicles; advanced materials for munitions; advanced materials for sporting goods; advanced manufacturing technologies, and dental implant and biomedical prosthetics technologies.
Sumner & Lawrence Limited (Sumner), based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, provides consulting services to the public sector, especially with regard to emerging technologies and alternative applications of established technologies. Sumner holds ongoing contracts with government agencies and the appropriate levels of security clearance for those contracts. Sumner's clients include the State Department, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, various military services and affiliated agencies, the National Laboratories, and contractors to these organizations.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By James E. Brumley]
For veteran traders who've kept tabs on Sigma Labs Inc. (OTCMKTS:SGLB) over the past three months or so, it may be surprising to hear someone suggest it as a buy. Like so many other stocks of its ilk have done since the beginning of the organized market, SGLB went from (proverbially) zero to hero between late May and mid-July with a move from $0.025 to a peak of $0.118 only to fall back to the $0.04 level a couple of weeks later. It's the relatively common "one hit wonder", and if Sigma Labs followed the usual pattern of other small stocks that burned brilliantly for a few days, we wouldn't see anything particularly bullish from SGLB for a few months, if not years.
Top 10 Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Stemline Therapeutics Inc (STML)
Stemline Therapeutics, Inc. (Stemline), incorporated on August 8, 2003, is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, acquiring, developing and commercializing therapeutics that target both cancer stem cells (CSCs) and tumor bulk. The Company is developing two clinical-stage product candidates, SL-401 and SL-701, for which it holds global marketing rights. The indication for SL-401, a biologic-drug conjugate, is acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The indications for SL-701, a synthetic peptide vaccine, are pediatric and adult brain cancer. It has a platform, StemScreen, for the discovery of CSC-targeted compounds, from which it has discovered or validated several of its clinical and preclinical product candidates. Stemline�� StemScreen consists of StemScreen-1 and StemScreen-2 for the identification of CSC-directed compounds.
SL-301 is a small molecule gamma-secretase inhibitor that inhibits Notch, a pathway expressed by CSCs and tumor bulk of multiple cancer types. SL-101 is a monoclonal antibody-based (mAb -based) compound that targets CD123 and has shown in vitro activity against certain hematologic cancers. SL-201 is a small molecule active against certain hematologic and solid tumor types. SL-601 is a mAb-based compound that targets a cell surface marker on bladder CSCs, which is also expressed on a variety of other solid tumor types. It has also in-licensed certain intellectual property directed to mAb-based therapeutics to validated oncology targets, including Glypican-3, Tie-1, CD133, Frizzled, Smoothened and Patched.
SL-401 - An IL-3R-Directed Compound Targeting Cancer Stem Cells and Tumor Bulk
SL-401 is a clinically active biologic-drug conjugate consisting of human interleukin-3 (IL-3) genetically linked to a truncated version of diphtheria toxin. SL-401 targets the IL-3 receptor (IL-3R), which is overexpressed on both the CSCs and tumor bulk of multiple hematologic cancers, including AML. SL-401 has demonstrated preclinical in vit! ro and in vivo activity against both leukemia blasts (which includes tumor bulk) and CSCs of a range of human leukemia cell lines and primary leukemia cells from patients.
SL-701
SL-701 is a clinically active synthetic peptide vaccine that targets several epitopes on CSCs and tumor bulk of brain cancer. In two completed Phase 1/2 clinical trials, SL-701 demonstrated single agent anti-tumor activity in pediatric patients with newly diagnosed brainstem glioma (BSG) and other high-grade gliomas (HGGs) and in adult patients with refractory or recurrent GBM, and other HGGs.
StemScreen-1
StemScreen-1 is a drug discovery platform designed to identify CSC-targeted compounds based on the isolation of CSCs and evaluation of CSC gene expression profiles. CSCs are isolated from primary tumor tissue or cell lines, and then subjected to gene expression analysis using a variety of technologies, including microarray. A control tissue, such as normal bone marrow is analyzed as a comparator against the gene expression profile of the isolated CSCs. These data are then interfaced with an information base of compounds and their mechanisms of action (that is which gene products and pathways they impact). It has utilized StemScreen-1 to discover a number of its preclinical drug candidates. These include SL-201, SL-301, and SL-601. In addition, SL-401 demonstrated activity against CSCs as determined by both an in vitro colony formation and in vivo animal implantation assay, thereby validating certain StemScreen-1 anti-CSC assays.
StemScreen-2
StemScreen-2 is a high throughput drug discovery platform it is developing to discover anti-CSC compounds. StemScreen-2 utilizes a cell-based assay that can track and follow CSCs in their natural state during high throughput screening. In particular, StemScreen-2 utilizes a CSC-specific promoter linked to a reporter as a method for identifying and following CSCs in their native environment of surrounding tumor b! ulk. In t! his way, StemScreen-2 enables the identification of compound hits, in a high throughput manner, with anti-CSC activity.
The Company competes with Boston Biomedical, Inc., Eclipse Therapeutics, Inc., OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Verastem, Inc., Astellas Pharma US, Inc., Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co. Ltd., Geron Corp., GlaxoSmithKline plc, ImmunoCellular Therapeutics, Ltd, Macrogenics Inc., Amgen, Inc., Pfizer Inc., Roche Holding AG, Sanofi U.S. LLC., Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Sunesis Pharmaceuticals Inc., Clavis Pharma ASA, Ambit Biosciences Corporation, Celgene Corporation, Eisai Co. Ltd., Celator Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck & Co., Inc., Eisai Co., Inc., Roche Holding AG, Novartis AG and Celldex Therapeutics, Inc.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Keith Speights]
Best-performing biotech IPO
Stemline Therapeutics� (NASDAQ: STML ) has only traded publicly this year, but what a year it's been. The stock's performance ranks Stemline as the best-performing biotech IPO so far in 2013. This week has been pretty good also, with shares moving up by 28%.
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