bluebird bio, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, focuses on developing transformative gene therapies for severe genetic and rare diseases. Its product candidates include Lenti-D, which is in phase II/III clinical studies for the treatment of cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy, a rare, hereditary neurological disorder; and LentiGlobin that is in phase I/II clinical studies for the treatment of beta-thalassemia major and severe sickle cell disease (SCD) in France, as well as a phase I study in the United States for the treatment of severe SCD. The company's lead chimeric antigen receptor T cell-based product candidate is bb2121, which is in phase I clinical trials for the treatment of relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma. bluebird bio, Inc. has a strategic collaboration with Celgene Corporation to discover, develop, and commercialize disease-altering gene therapies in oncology; and Kite Pharma, Inc. to develop and commercialize second generation T cell receptor product candidates against the human papillomavirus type 16 E6 oncoprotein. The company was formerly known as Genetix Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and changed its name to bluebird bio, Inc. in September 2010. bluebird bio, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The automated Quantcha Trade Ideas Service has detected a promising Bull Put Spread trade opportunity for BLUEBIRD BIO INC. COMMON STOC (BLUE) for the 15-Apr-2016 expiration period. You can analyze the opportunity in depth over at the Quantcha Options Search Engine. BLUE was recently trading at $51.17 and has an implied volatility of 69.40% for this period. Based on an analysis of the options available for BLUE expiring on 15-Apr-2016, there is a 34.15% likelihood that the underlying will close within the analyzed range of $51.22-$57.39 at expiration. In this scenario, the average linear return for the trade would be 46.15%. Trending on StockTwits: StockTwits® is a financial communications platform for the financial and investing community. On their site, BLUEBIRD BIO INC. COMMON STOC was recently trending, indicating that breaking news and/or market activity has significantly impacted sentiment toward the stock. This movement can be interpretted as a sign of more near-term price movement for the underlying. Trade approach: The recent sentiment change in BLUE on StockTwits appears to be moderately positive, indicating that the stock is likely to follow in that direction for investors trading on sentiment. As a result, a bullish strategy could prove effective if the sentiment ultimately turns out to drive trading. Upside potential: Using this bullish strategy, the trade would be profitable if BLUEBIRD BIO INC. COMMON STOC closed at or above $51.05 on 15-Apr-2016. Based on our analysis, there is a 51.18% likelihood of this return. Downside risk: As with any options trade, there is a substantial downside risk where you may lose most or all of your investment. http://ideas.quantcha.com/2016/04/0...erest-in-bluebird-bio-inc-common-stoc-blue-2/
BLUE down about -8% here on a downgrade Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded bluebird bio Inc BLUE 6.18% from Hold to Sell.
$BLUE weekly. currently weekly set up an inside week after last week's breakout from triangle. see how it closes
This is old news from Dec 2015 (http://www.biospace.com/News/bluebird-bio-stock-plunges-after-mixed-report-on/402021). But wanted to get it here: Its gene therapy treatment for blood disorders (including beta- thalassemia major and sickle cell disease) works differently for each patient. Many patients getting treatment have avoided the need to get blood transfusions (at least for a short term). But patients with two copies of a genetic mutation—each called b0—that prevents them from producing any beta globin, a subunit of hemoglobin, did not benefit from the treatment. However one patient (back in Oct 2015) who underwent an early gene study treatment for beta-thalassemia seven years ago required new treatments following a relapse with clinical symptoms of anemia. So there it is. This blood disorder treatment can be (temporarily) successful, but after several years another treatment may be necessary for some. And if you have two copies of the genetic mutation, then you're SOL here.
A news story not specifically about BLUE, but more generally about immunotherapy. http://www.bbc.com/news/health-44338276 The life of a woman with terminal breast cancer has been saved by a pioneering new therapy, say US researchers. It involved pumping 90 billion cancer-killing immune cells into her body. Judy Perkins had been given three months to live, but two years later there is no sign of cancer in her body. The technology is a "living drug" made from a patient's own cells at one of the world's leading centres of cancer research. [I don't think they mention the name anywhere] It remains experimental and still requires considerably more testing before it can be used more widely, but this is how it works: it starts by getting to know the enemy. A patient's tumour is genetically analysed to identify the rare changes that might make the cancer visible to the immune system. Out of the 62 genetic abnormalities in this patient, only four were potential lines of attack. Next researchers go hunting. A patient's immune system will already be attacking the tumour, it's just losing the fight between white blood cells and cancer. The scientists screen the patient's white blood cells and extract those capable of attacking the cancer. These are then grown in huge quantities in the laboratory. Around 90 billion were injected back into the 49-year-old patient, alongside drugs to take the brakes off the immune system. "The very mutations that cause cancer turn out to be its Achilles heel." These are the results from a single patient and much larger trials will be needed to confirm the findings. The challenge so far in cancer immunotherapy is it tends to work spectacularly for some patients, but the majority do not benefit. The last quote there is of interest; the majority do NOT benefit from immunotherapy. Ultimately I think this will be a great cancer drug. It will save some people. More work needs to be done.
