• Analysts Pitch Up to 1,000% Returns in Biotech Beyond Covid-19

    Analysts Pitch Up to 1,000% Returns in Biotech Beyond Covid-19(Bloomberg) — Even a global pandemic hasn’t shaken optimism in one of the most volatile industries.As Covid-19 dominates headlines and sparks billion-dollar share moves, biotech analysts are still pitching massive returns in companies that have nothing to do with developing a drug or vaccine for the disease.Wall Street analysts expect 105 of the 209 members of the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index to double over the next 12 months, data compiled by Bloomberg show. With the index trading just off a record high, many of the Street’s biggest bulls favor companies in areas like women’s health and cancer.Macrogenics Inc., Cytokinetics Inc. and Akebia Therapeutics Inc. are among drugmakers that have doubled so far this year. But the boom-or-bust nature of drug development has burned investors in other stocks, even after analysts piled on praise. Sage Therapeutics Inc.’s failed depression drug study, AnaptysBio Inc.’s eczema flop and Genfit’s NASH woes in recent months have wiped out millions in market value.Here are some of Wall Street’s biggest biotech calls right now:TherapeuticsMD Inc.Cantor Fitzgerald’s Louise Chen has a $13 target on TherapeuticsMD, or more than 10 times where the stock has been trading lately. The women’s health company has struggled to balance spending with the need to promote products such as its Annovera birth-control ring. Seven of nine analysts that follow the stock recommend buying shares and their average target implies a 574% surge in the next year. At the same time, money managers like Deerfield Management Co. and Frontier Capital Management Co. have thrown in the towel on their bets this year. And JPMorgan this week cut its rating on TherapeuticsMD to a hold equivalent, citing Covid-19 disruptions.Evolus Inc.Chen also carries the price target with the second-highest implied return in the Nasdaq Biotech Index. Her call that Evolus will reach $35 in a year suggests a gain of 770%. She has maintained that target since June 2018 despite the stock’s 85% drop since then, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The “performance beauty company” has struggled to meet early expectations for sales of its wrinkle treatment — and Botox rival — Jeuveau, after the pandemic closed practices.Chen didn’t respond to requests for comment about her targets.Precigen Inc.JMP’s Jason Butler likes Precigen’s emerging cancer-therapy pipeline ahead of key data readouts later this year. JMP has served as a lead manager for each of the company’s last two share offerings. Precigen’s value has been cut in half over the past year. The stock has two buy ratings and two holds, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.Sage Therapeutics Inc.Goldman Sachs analyst Salveen Richter expects Sage to regain levels last seen before a December trial flop in major depressive disorder. Her price target on the stock is $190, more than double the Street average of $73 and about five times the current price. It is worth noting that Goldman has acted on each of the company’s offerings since going public in 2014 and Richter has recommended shares since picking up coverage four years ago. She is focused on new data for the depression drug that are expected later this year and in 2021.Atara Biotherapeutics Inc.The $70 target that Canaccord Genuity analyst John Newman has for Atara implies almost 400% upside and is nearly double the expectations for his nearest peer, Mizuho’s Salim Syed. The stock’s peak was $65.56, in mid-2015. Newman’s model focuses on the company’s lead program for post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease. Data for Atara’s earlier-stage multiple sclerosis drug will be posted Friday afternoon ahead of the European Academy of Neurology’s congress, which is virtual this year. Newman says promising results there could also spark a gain in the shares.Unity Biotechnology Inc.Syed’s call for Unity to be worth $33 — compared to about $7 currently — stands out on Wall Street. Syed has kept that same target since starting coverage in September 2018 despite the stock’s 61% slide. This long-term bet hasn’t helped Syed’s overall track record — his calls have lost 16% of their value in the past two years compared to a 3.1% drop for peers, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Syed says the second half of the year is “catalyst-heavy” for Unity and he expects investor interest to pick up in the coming months.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

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  • 6 Reasons You Need A Forex Demo Account in Jordan

    If you’re new to forex trading, honing your skills through a forex demo account is essential before you start trading for real in Jordan. This article will give you 6 reasons why you might need to open a demo account. 

    Did you know that in 2018 global trading volumes in the forex market were at an all time record high? Why? Because of the volatility in the world markets, more and more people are turning to forex to trade in, in order to get a better rate of return. 

    In the US alone, over 14 million households (according to Statista) have an online trading account. The forex market turns over more than $5 trillion each and every day – if that isn’t incentive enough to get into forex trading, what is? 

    Of course this can be an incredibly daunting market to break into, which is why practicing trading through a forex demo account first, is crucial, if you don’t want to lose money making silly mistakes. 

    What is a forex demo account

    You’ve probably got a fairly good understanding of what a Jordan forex demo account is – it’s essentially a paper trading account which gives you information from live markets, simulating the real trading environment. All without putting any of your actual money at play (or at risk).

    Using a demo account allows you to start trading online quickly and easily, practicing and learning what works for you before doing it for real, with cold hard cash. 

    If this is your first time trading, then using a forex demo is a must to get a feel for what live trading is actually like, as well as to get used to the trading platform and the broker you’re using.

    How to open a forex demo account

    Opening a demo account is quick and easy. All you have to do is pick your prefered platform and in a matter of minutes you’ll have a practice forex account all set up –  ready for you to try your hand at trading currency, without losing money, should it all go horribly wrong. 

    Why trade with a demo account?

    The safety net of a demo account will be invaluable as you navigate the often confusing world of forex. By using a demo account you’ll quickly learn the ins and outs of your chosen trading platform. You can figure out your prefered trading strategy too, analysing the results once you’ve made your trades (not that this will necessarily translate through to success in the real markets). It’s a risk free way of learning how to trade on the global currency market. 

    Let’s take a look at these in more depth.

    1. Learn how to trade risk free

    When you trade with a demo account it’s identical to a live account. You’re learning to trade on the job, but without any of the risk. 

    You can put all of your trade training into practice without losing any real money. In a demo account you trade with virtual funds, and you don’t have to switch to a live account until you’re entirely comfortable trading on the demo account. 

    Most platforms also have a learning hub where if you’re new to trading you can learn how to trade for free. Even if you’re a novice, or intermediate, or even an experienced trader you should never stop learning.

    2. Get to know your trading platform

    MetaTrader4, more commonly known as MT4, is the most popular trading platform for online traders to use. It has an interface that’s been developed to handle the full range of clients that use it, making it the best tool for both beginner traders through to professional forex traders. 

    When you open a demo account you learn how to trade using this platform – how to close your trade and how to put all the different tools to best use. 

    Before you open a live account, it’s essential you’re completely familiar with the ins and outs of trading – when you go live it’s your actual capital at risk. By using a demo account you’re setting yourself up for long term financial success.  

    3. Discover your boundaries

    Trading brings out a range of emotions and you need to know where your boundaries are, and you don’t want to discover them when you’re trading with your actual money. 

    Overconfidence can carry you way beyond your comfort zone, and when you’re trading for real, this can equal devastating losses. 

    By playing around with your boundaries on the demo account, you’ll learn how to deal with euphoria and disappointment, so they don’t cloud your judgement in future trades.

    5. Develop your trading strategy

    Testing and adjusting a trading strategy is key to success. One trading strategy won’t work for all trades, such is life. You need to develop a trading strategy that allows you to be flexible and roll with the punches. You can learn and develop such a strategy, or strategies on a demo account. 

    Over time, the more trades you do, the more you’ll see what your own trading patterns look like, and you can analyse what you’re doing well and what you need to improve on. 

    Not putting your own capital at risk in a demo account means you can be as creative as you like and try all sorts of trading strategies, including really far-fetched ones and find out which work best for you.

    6. Figure out your trading routine

    Once you know your strategy, you can then figure out your trading routine. Just because you live in Jordan, doesn’t mean must you solely trade in Jordan. 

    That’s the beauty of online trading, you have access to the global forex markets. Most traders choose to trade around the opening of the big markets – Tokyo, London and New York (12am, 8am and 2.30pm GMT). However that doesn’t mean that you have to trade then. 

    You want to find a time that suits you. A time when you’re completely focused on what you’re doing – develop your routine to fit around your work and home life. The last thing you want is to make poor trading decisions because you’re distracted. 

    Finally

    Remember, forex trading is a marathon – so plan for the long term and practice, practice practice trading on a forex demo account. It’ll pay dividends in the long run.

    The post 6 Reasons You Need A Forex Demo Account in Jordan appeared first on Wall Street Survivor.

    source https://blog.wallstreetsurvivor.com/2020/05/21/6-reasons-you-need-a-forex-demo-account-in-jordan/

  • How ESG Funds Have Been Outperforming the Market

    The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating impact upon the world’s financial markets, but there is one sector that has fared better than most: funds that are focused on environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies. These funds look to invest in quality companies that are also socially responsible, and that they are doing well is not by accident, nor should it be considered a short-term trend.

    While you have a myriad of good investment options available to you, ESG investing, which has been growing in popularity in recent years, is one of the more interesting and promising ones. This article describes what ESG investing is, how and why ESG funds are currently outpacing other sectors, their future outlook and how you can take advantage of this trend.

    What Is ESG Investing?

    ESG investing is different than traditional forms of investment in that the focus of investors goes beyond financial factors such as growth potential and risk. These additional factors relate to whether a company’s activities are having a positive impact upon the world. This impact can take shape in various forms, such as environmental sustainability, how it treats its customers, employees and community, and how it is structured to both encourage openness and prevent corruption.

    In essence, investors are looking for companies that not only perform well but also act well.

    Prior to the coronavirus epidemic, ESG funds had not only been growing tremendously, they had also been less volatile than standard funds.

    How and Why ESG Funds Have Lately Been Outperforming the Market

    During the coronavirus pandemic, the performance of ESG funds has been dramatic. In March of this year, Bloomberg looked at close to 3,000 ESG funds. They found that about 400 of them produced a positive return for the year even before the stock market began to rebound. Close to 50 of these even managed to produce gains of 10% or more.

    Although Bloomberg also found that the average ESG fund at the time had lost 12.2% since the beginning of the year, this represented about half the decline of the S&P 500 over the same period. An analysis from Morningstar further backed these findings. They found that 24 of the 26 ESG funds that they looked at performed better than comparable non-ESG funds during the crisis.

    Numerous factors can be credited for this performance. This includes better risk management among the companies within the funds’ portfolios, less exposure to companies related to or reliant upon fossil fuels, and a general interest among investors to support companies that are doing their part in trying to heal the world.

    The Outlook for ESG Funds

    Some may be concerned with how ESG funds will perform once the pandemic is over, especially as, in the past, these funds have only outperformed standard funds in the aftermath of crises and during years in which the stock market was experiencing a downturn. But we may find ourselves in a world that has fundamentally changed forever.

    Some now see ESG investing as a mega trend. Steen Jakobsen, who is the chief economist of Saxo Bank, has said, “For the first time since World War II we sense a shift in which climate and the environment — not growth — will become the priority of governments and their citizens, as shortages of food, clean water and air become existential questions.”

    How You Can Take Advantage of the Trend Toward ESG Investing

    You can take advantage of the trend toward ESG investing by selecting from the large number of ESG funds that are available. They come in the form of both mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), with some being passive index funds that build their portfolios based on established ESG rankings and others being actively managed.

    There are also many types of ESG funds to choose from. There are broadly diversified funds as well as those that focus on either large or small companies. There are further funds that invest in foreign countries and those that operate specifically in emerging markets.

    You can additionally invest in ESG funds that focus on specific interests, such as climate change or the conservation of important resources.

    Summary

    There are very real reasons why ESG funds are performing better than other sectors during the pandemic. What’s more, there are good reasons to believe that this trend will continue even after the current crisis has subsided, making it an attractive investment option to consider.

    The post How ESG Funds Have Been Outperforming the Market appeared first on Wall Street Survivor.

    source https://blog.wallstreetsurvivor.com/2020/05/21/how-esg-funds-have-been-outperforming-the-market/

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