Stem Cell Leader Neostem Beats 12 Month Revenue Estimates
Stem Cell biotechnology company, Neostem, Inc. recently released its outlook for 2010, in which CEO Dr. Robin Smith said 2009 was a “transitional year.”
Revenue estimates were not revealed.
AXcess News featured Neostem in a story in March, following Roth Capital Partners release of a ‘Buy’ recommendation. That story noted “Neostem’s dual market approach of transitioning to a biopharmaceutical company through its China acquisition alongside the company’s human stem development would benefit investors. After reading the annual report, it appears that may be an understatement.”
Trading in a narrow range for the past six months, volume in the stock has been picking up since mid-January. After the closing bell in New York on Wednesday, the company reported $11.5 million in revenue for year-end 2009, beating an estimate from Roth Capital Partners, by 9.5%.
AXcess News says these results for Neostem, Inc. (AMEX: NBS) “could place the stem cell leader in a position for an upgrade by Roth analysts.”
Neostem released the 2010 Outlook before the market opened for trading Thursday, with Dr. Smith indicating their focus for 2010 is on “growing our pharmaceutical platform, expanding our US stem cell collection network, and implementing and advancing our adult stem cell initiatives in China.”
While the reference to the Chinese market is interesting, in the US, the company says it will be “advancing our stem cell therapeutic development through the application of our VSEL technology.”
According to the annual 10-K report, Neostem “transformed into an international biotechnology company” through the acquisition of a controlling interest in China-based Suzhou Erye Pharmaceuticals Ltd., referenced as Erye.
The acquisition helped the Company move revenue growth ahead of its peers in the fourth quarter, additionally completing an oversubscribed $5.7 million IPO led by Roth. In addition, an Erye executive exercised $1.75 million in warrants at $175 per share, the market price of Neostem common stock at that time. Outstanding options were then extended and the price increased.
Axcess News says investors tracking the human stem cell leader didn’t pick up on the significance of those moves.
The additional funds are being used for a significant expansion of production capacity in China, as the Chinese pharmaceutical market records increasing demand.
That expansion appears to have been well-timed, pushing Neostem annual revenue to $11.5 million – ahead of the $10.5 million estimated by Roth. Included on the income side was the company’s initial annual revenue from its stem cell bank market development in the US. While this was only $45,091, it is an indication Neostem’s plans to grow its human stem cell business may be on the right track.
While Neostem’s 2010 Outlook did not reveal revenue estimates, Dr. Smith did say that Eyre would be launching “several stem cell applications” in the Chinese market while “advancing our stem cell therapeutic development through the application of our VSEL technology in the US.”
Neostem owns 100% of the worldwide rights to the stem cell breakthrough, very small embryonic-like stem cells, known as VSEL technology.
Of this technology, the Neostem website says, “Very Small Embryonic-Like stem cells, which forms the basis of the VSELTM Technology, have many physical characteristics typically found in embryonic stem cells, including the ability to differentiate into specialized cells found in different types of tissue that would be able to interact with the specific organ in order to repair degenerated, damaged or diseased tissue (the three “Ds” of aging).”
