What: Investors in Opko Health (OPK 1.63%) are having a pleasant day as shares of the biopharmaceutical and diagnostics company rose as much as 10% in late afternoon trading Wednesday after an SEC filing revealed continued insider buying from a top executive.
So what: An SEC filing issued Wednesday showed that Phillip Frost, Opko Health's CEO, has been aggressively adding to his already massive position in the company. It was reported on Wednesday that his Frost-Gamma Investment trust continued to purchase shares recently and it now owns more than 159 million shares. All told CEO Frost's entire position in the company is now more than 182 million shares.
Investors appear to be taking this as a vote of confidence for the company's prospects and are bidding up shares as a result.
Now what: Its great to see that an accomplished executive like Phillip Frost is willing to put even more of his own money on the line, especially considering that he already held a substantial position in the company.
That's especially true when considering that Opko Health is slated to hear from the FDA about its pending application for Rayaldee, its oral vitamin D compound that the company believes will be useful in helping patients with chronic kidney disease. The FDA has set a PDUFA decision date of March 29th for the drug.
Beyond Rayaldee, Opko Health has other irons on the fire that should make 2016 an exciting year for the company. In November, its partner Tesaro (NASDAQ: TSRO) launched its anti-nausea cancer drug Varubi for sale, and it Tesaro can successfully market the drug then it could be a huge financial win for Opko Health. Tesoro has pledged to pay Opko Health up to $95 million in milestone payment as well as double digit royalties on sales if the drug reaches certain targets.
Later in the year Opko Health will be reporting Phase 3 data for hGH-CTP, its human growth hormone that it's developing in collaboration with Pfizer. If this managers to find its way to market then the company collect another $275 million in milestone payments plus royalties.
With several catalysts on the horizon and the company projected to swing to profitability for the full year its possible that Opko Health's stock could bounce back from its huge decline recently. If so the CEO Frost's recent buying could prove to be a wise move.
