BioCryst takes on Tamiflu

• By the tickerspy.com Staff
• On 11:02 am EDT, Monday September 14, 2009

Peramivir could be the next swine flu-fighting one-dose wonder.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NADSAQ: BCRX) has been one of the hottest swine flu plays on the Street, spiking by 700% over the last six months. Moves in the stock have been closely tied to the company's peramivir drug, which according to a recent study is as effective as Roche's (OTC: RHHBY - News) Tamiflu, the reigning anti-flu champ.

According to a report in the Associated Press, a large Asian study found that one intravenous dose of peramivir relieved symptoms as well as five days of Tamiflu pills. Aside from working between three and four hours sooner than Tamiflu, peramivir led to fewer adverse reactions, according to study leader Dr. Shigeru Kohno of Nagasaki University.

BioCryst is slipping fractionally today as investors who bought on the rumor are selling on the news. As a whole, the Swine and Bird Flu Stocks Index is trading lower by -1.5% to start the week. The Index remains ahead of the S&P 500 by 11% over the last month.

BioCryst's recent performance has weighed on the sector's average. The stock has fallen by -5.7% over the last five sessions, joining Inovio Biomedical (AMEX: INO - News), Hemispherx Biopharma (AMEX: HEB - News), and Pure Bioscience (NASDAQ: PURE - News) in negative territory for the period.

Sinovac Biotech (AMEX: SVA - News) stands atop the Swine Flu Index's one-month performance rankings. The stock has more than doubled for the period after its vaccine was approved by Chinese health regulators.

Protective respirator mask company Alpha Pro Tech (AMEX: APT - News) and Vical (NASDAQ: VICL - News) are also up big over the last month. The former announced plans to ramp up N-95 respirator production in the fourth quarter, and, according to the Associated Press, the latter saw robust immune response in rodents given its DNA-based swine flu vaccine.

As the height of the flu season approaches in the northern hemisphere, the hype surrounding the potentially deadly H1N1 strain is growing. Investors looking to protect their portfolio from the pandemic can look to Swine and Bird Flu Stocks Index for performance trends and to see what the Pros are buying.

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