Tuesday Morning Market Insights: Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN), Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NOK), Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (LXRX), Synthetic Biologics Inc (SYN)


Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) shares are up nearly 1% in pre-market trading this morning after the company released figures from its Black Friday holiday shopping weekend. This weekend was the best ever for Amazon devices, with #1 being Fire and #2 being Fire TV Stick. Related, Fire TV sales increased 6% year over year. Out of the $100 + products on its site, Amazon Echo was the best seller. The company also sold hundreds of thousands of its e-reader Kindle. Senior Vice President of Amazon Devices David Limp stated “We’re excited that millions of customers will be opening new Amazon devices this holiday season. This has already been the biggest holiday shopping season for Amazon devices, and we’re energized by the year over year growth for all of our product categories.” He continued, “With a sub-$50 price point for one or $250 for a six-pack, we’ve reached a tipping point with Fire—it is our fastest-selling tablet ever. We’ve already built millions—and we’re ramping up production to build millions more.”

According to TipRanks’ statistics, out of 28 analysts who have rated Amazon in the past 3 months, 24 gave a Buy rating while 4 remain on the sidelines. The average 12-month price target for the stock is $720.89, marking an 8% upside from where shares last closed.

AMZN Consensus

Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) shares are up almost 3% in pre-market trading this morning following an upgrade by Alchal Sultania from Credit Suisse. The analyst upgraded the stock to Outperfom from Neutral without providing a price target. The analyst attributes his upgrade to the long-term savings potential from Nokia’s merger with Alcatel-Lucent, announced in October. The merger, expected to be completed by the first half of 2016, will be split the combined company into 4 groups: mobile networks, fixed networks, applications and analytics, and IP/optical networks. CEO Rajiv Suri stated “We aim for all our business groups to be innovation leaders, drawing on the combined company’s unparalleled R&D capabilities to deliver leading products and services for our customers, and ultimately ensure the company’s long-term value creation.”

In addition, the company has made headlines yesterday with the announcement that its OZO virtual reality camera will become available commercially. Nokia is currently opening pre-orders for the $60,000 device which will start shipping in Q1 2016. As the first VR camera, the revolutionary device has features such as real-time VR previews and full 3D 360 video and audio capabilities. Company president Ramzi Haidamus states, “We’re at the dawn of an exciting new medium that will transform the way people connect to stories, events, and the world around them.” He continued, “OZO is a powerful tool designed for the professional creators who will answer the most exciting and intriguing questions about the possibilities for virtual reality.”

According to TipRanks’ statistics, out of 5 analysts who have rated Nokia in the last 3 months, all 5 gave a Buy rating. The average 12-month price target for the stock is $9.57, marking a 33% upside from where shares last closed.

NOK Consensus

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX) rose almost 4% in pre-market trading this morning following the announcement of positive top-line results from its second phase 3 clinical trial of telotristat etiphrate (TELECAST), aimed at treating carcinoid syndrome in cancer patients with metastatic neuroendocrine tumors. Carcinoid syndrome affects cancer patients with metastatic neuroendocrine tumors that spread from the gastrointestinal tract to the liver and other organs. Patients with the condition suffer from severe diarrhea, abdomical pain, faigure, some sometimes heart valve damage. The study indicated that TELECAST met the “primary efficacy endpoint, the percent change from baselines in urinary 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA, the main metabolite of serotonin) at week 12, the final week of the double-blind treatment portion of the study.”

Lexicon Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Offer Pablo Lapuerta, M.D. stated “We are very pleased with the efficacy and safety results of telotristat etiprate in this study, notably including evidence of benefit in a patient population whose bowel movement frequency was lower at baseline than was the case in TELESTAR.” He continued, “TELECAST was intended to complement our pivotal Phase 3 trial, TELESTAR. We now have experience in more than 200 patients with carcinoid syndrome, with TELECAST contributing consistent efficacy data and favorable safety results. The data further support that the compound is acting directly on the cause of carcinoid syndrome, by reducing serotonin production within tumor cells.”

According to TipRanks’ statistics, out of the 2 analysts who have rated LXRX in the last 3 months, both gave a Buy rating. The average 12-month price target for the stock is $23.50, marking a 71% upside from where shares last closed.

LXRX

Synthetic Biologics Inc (NYSEMKT:SYN) soared 13% in pre-market trading this morning after the company released positive results from its first phase 2 clinical trial of SYN-004, its drug candidate designed to prevent C.difficle infection. The drug aims to protect the gut microbiome from the unintended harmful effects of common IV beta-lactam antibiotics, which are used to prevent C.difficle infection and antibiotic-associated diarrhea.

The results revealed that 10 participants who completed the Phase2a open-label study showed the drug “successfully degraded residual IV ceftriaxone in the chime (digestive fluid in the small intestine) without affecting the intended level of ceftriaxone in the bloodstream.” Additionally, the study revealed that both doses of the drug were well-tolerated. CEO Jeffery Riley stated, “We are pleased to report additional progress from our SYN-004 program. We have begun dosing patients in the SYN-004 Phase 2b proof-of-concept clinical trial that is intended to evaluate the effectiveness of SYN-004 to prevent C. difficile infection and C. difficile associated diarrhea, as well as antibiotic-associated diarrhea in up to 370 patients hospitalized for a lower respiratory tract infection and receiving IV ceftriaxone.”

According to TipRanks’ statistics, out of 3 analysts who have rated SYN in the last 3 months, all 3 gave a Buy rating. The average 12-month price target for the stock is $7.33, marking a 156% upside from where shares last closed.

SYN Consensus

 

 

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