Biotech stock Regeneron Pharmaceuticals is in a field that continues to receive investor love while the overall stock market sputters and plays havoc with tech stocks. The IBD 50 stock remains near the top of a buy zone after breaking out of new base in March and therefore also remains among the growth stocks to watch.
A positive sign is that Regeneron's relative strength line is sallying into new high ground as the market indexes run into trouble. Strength amid market weakness is a hallmark of growth stocks to watch.
Strong Ratings For Growth Stock To Watch
The Tarrytown, N.Y.-based maker of drugs to treat eye diseases, inflammatory diseases and cancer has other factors in its favor. The stock carries a perfect 99 Earnings Per Share Rating. This measures a company's earnings strength against all others in the market. Regeneron's earnings have leapt 260%, 84% and 149% in the past three quarters on equally impressive sales growth of 163%, 51% and 104%.
Regeneron's Relative Strength Rating and Composite Rating also are in the upper 90s, just what you want to see in growth stocks to watch.
The stock ranks No. 2 in the biotech group, according to IBD Stock Checkup. The group itself sits at No. 111 out of IBD's 197 industry groups ranked by stock price performance. The biotech industry group's ranking is below the 40 or above that your normally want to see in growth stocks to watch, but the biotech field has been making headway. It was ranked No. 142 three weeks ago and 168 six weeks ago. The health care sector in general is outperforming lately.
The group also holds several other highly rated stocks showing strength. That helps offset the group's lower ranking. Other market-leading stocks in the group include Pacira Biosciences, Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Amphastar Pharmaceuticals.
Growth Faces Tough Year-Ago Comparisons
Regeneron's pace of growth is difficult to sustain over long periods. Wall Street analysts expect EPS to slip 1% in the first quarter of this year and be down 40% for the full-year. Results are due May 4.
But this growth stock to watch continues to work on new treatments.
On Monday, the company and Sanofi announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration accepted a supplemental Biologics License Application for Dupixent for priority review in patients 12 years old and up.
If accepted, it would be the first medicine available in the U.S. to treat eosinophilic esophagitis. This chronic and progressive inflammatory disease damages the esophagus and impairs the ability to swallow. There are about 160,000 patients in the U.S. being treated for this ailment. About 48,000 of those have failed multiple existing treatments, the company said.
The target action date for the FDA decision on this investigational use is Aug. 3.
Regeneron stock broke out above a flat-base buy point of 673.96 on March 16, according to MarketSmith chart analysis. It's now in the upper reaches of its buy zone, which goes up to 707.66.
