In the following video, Fool analysts David Williamson and Austin Smith discuss Dendreon (NASDAQ: DNDN) and some key areas for investors to watch.
For many investors, the health-care market can be an intimidating place. David says there are a few things Dendreon investors can focus on to avoid all the noise around the company.
Dendreon is currently testing its Provenge prostate cancer treatment against two other drugmakers' treatments for the disease. Showing a clinical benefit for using Provenge first would be huge, David says. It could hush skeptics and drive sales of the drug, which, at $93,000 a treatment, costs significantly more than the other drugs.
The company is also awaiting EU approval for its drug. Analysts are skeptical about that market, and for good reason, David says. Decisions on treatment are made by state-run health-care plans, which are typically much tougher negotiators. Dendreon might be forced to offer significant discounts.
That would put additional pressure on the company's already small margins, David says.
