ASTM - Sector: Healthcare---Industry: Biotechnology & Drugs

[Ramsburg]

Position was closed @ 1.45 following the plan.

[thai626]

I gotta update my baby!     Although, I'm still losing in this stock right now, I am confident that I'll make my money back.  In fact, it's not really my money to start with since I bought it with the money I made off the stock in Jan 2005.

Anyways, back to ASTM.  2007 is the year for ASTM.  They have many milestones to try to meet. Although they are not yet a profitable company (not for a while), I still think what they do is pretty damn interesting. 

The list of 2007 outlooks are as follows (from email response)
Bone Regeneration

Initiate U.S. pivotal osteonecrosis trial (1H/2007)

Report final U.S. Phase I/II long bone fracture trial results (2H/2007)

Complete EU Phase I/II long bone fracture trial enrollment

Complete U.S. Phase I/II spine fusion trial enrollment

Vascular Regeneration

Initiate U.S. Phase IIb critical limb ischemia trial (1H/2007)

Complete EU Phase I/II critical limb ischemia trial enrollment

Cardiac Regeneration

Initiate Phase I/II pilot cardiac trial (1Q/2007)

Neural Regeneration

Complete preclinical research

Initiate Phase I/II spinal cord injury trial (end of 2007)

[osxfoundry]

I do own ASTM (back when it was in the $4, so I am down quite some).
Looking at your graph. The MCAD is crossing, trend seems to reverse but look at the volume.
It's low. A beginning reversing trend with low volume usually does not hold too long.
(AKAM on the other end, has better chance).

If volume picks up, then price will move much higher.

[setravis]

"ASTM" Threads have been Merged.
Please use the search before starting new threads on a Stock Pick.
Chances are a thread already exist.
So why not post whatever you have to comment about on that pick to that thread.
"Simplicity" My fellow traders.                     
All history on a stock pick in 1 thread is awesome.                     
Just trying to get threads together,so we don't have a numerous amount floating around on the same stock.
Thank You....and good luck with all your trades....make some $$$     


Friday's closing chart....... "Happy New Year" !

 

[ScottishTrader]

ASTM update:  Big descending wedge breakout at the beginning of Jan on postive stem cell regulaory outlook for 07.  Tested key long term resistance at 1.65, and pulled back.  Support @ 1.31-32 and strong support at 1.22.  Near term resistance @ 1.45-45, then 1.50.  Watch for upside continuation.

[brandyjoco]

ASTM has been consolidating for about 6 months and seems to have broken out today to $1.46 on somewhat higher volume . I am really concerned as my husband has a heavy long term position in this stock.  I don't know how to 'interpret' the long term 2 year chart... Can anyone help me?  Is there hope for this stock?

I really appreciate anyone's help on this one....

[thai626]

Here's one that's a no brainer and certainly one that I really like    

Last candle shows a G-baby breakout with supporting volume.  Once the 1.65 resistance level is broken.......we're off to new territory.  Hint hint........it starts with 2.xx

It's only a matter of time my friends...........only a matter of time.   

[ScottishTrader]

I like it Thai!! Nice! 

[thai626]

WOW WOW WOW!!      

This is certainly not the way I was hoping ASTM was going to trade this week!  That goes to show you, you can never be so sure in the stock market.  I wasn't necessarily expecting ASTM to hit 2.00 this week, but I for sure wasn't expecting it to drop this week. 

Only time will tell the story on this one.

[ScottishTrader]

yeah, unforunately I jumped in when it gapped up to 1.65 the other day, not a big position, and got stopped out just below 1.50.  I thought this week would be a big week for biotech, but instead it killed me, and I jumped in on a bunch of big losers.  Will keep an eye out and look for support/basing.  Looks like the 50MA and 20MA  may provide some support.

Have moved my cash to other sectors for now, but will keep an eye on things.

[Lucas Scott]

Gotta believe the stem cell stocks will have a huge run at some point in the next year or so. The Dems will probably take the White House but, whether they do or not, the run in stem cells will probably come beforehand as investors speculate. Right now, with a close above $1.60 we'll see $2.20. That's a swing I want to trade. Longer term, I think it sees $4 within 18 months. Bookmark this post so you can laugh at me in 18 months if it's at 40 cents

[thai626]

FDA Approves Aastrom Phase III IND for Treatment of Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head
Patient-Specific Stem Cell Trial to Address Unmet Medical Need

ANN ARBOR, Mich., May 7, 2007 (PrimeNewswire via COMTEX News Network) -- Aastrom Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASTM), a regenerative medicine company, today announced that the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Company's Investigational New Drug (IND) application to initiate a 120 patient Phase III clinical trial for the treatment of osteonecrosis (also known as avascular necrosis) of the femoral head. Aastrom intends this to be a pivotal trial with the goal of demonstrating clinical safety and efficacy for the submission of a Biologics License Application (BLA). In addition, the Company may have to generate further patient data in this indication, such as data from the ongoing pivotal trial in Spain, to support a U.S. BLA submission. Osteonecrosis is a progressive disease, with no established effective treatments, that often leads to a total hip replacement. Aastrom will use its Bone Repair Cell (BRC) product, based on Tissue Repair Cell (TRC) Technology, to evaluate this approach for treating patients suffering from osteonecrosis.

"This is our first Phase III clinical trial focused on tissue regeneration, and it represents a significant step forward for both the Company and the field of regenerative medicine. We are thrilled to report the achievement of this clinical milestone," said George Dunbar, President and Chief Executive Officer of Aastrom. "Should the clinical trial results meet our expectations, we intend to seek licensure and take the BRC product to market under our existing Orphan Drug Designation."

Initiation of this clinical trial complements the receipt of an Orphan Drug Designation from the FDA. Orphan drug status is granted to development-stage products that offer potential therapeutic value in the treatment of rare diseases and conditions. The Company may be entitled to several benefits prior to approval, including an expedited FDA review, the reduction or even elimination of filing fees, and the availability of possible tax credits, and will be entitled to seven years of marketing exclusivity once the product receives FDA approval.

This trial will seek to enroll 120 patients, randomized into two patient groups, at up to 20 clinical sites. The planned treatment approach for all patients will include a core decompression surgery where a core track (hole) is drilled into the head of the femur to relieve internal pressure. Patients randomized into the treatment group will have BRCs mixed with a bone matrix carrier placed into the core track, while control patients will receive bone matrix carrier without cells. If healthy bone can be successfully regenerated in the femoral head, we expect the need for a hip replacement could be delayed or eliminated in osteonecrosis patients. The primary efficacy endpoint of this trial is to prevent or delay the progression of osteonecrosis to fracture, and potentially collapse of the femur head, which will be measured by a blinded third-party reviewer through MRI and CT imaging. Patients will be followed for a total of 24 months, post-treatment.

"Osteonecrosis is a pressing medical problem in orthopedic medicine. This disease generally afflicts younger people, and often has a poor prognosis. More than half of the patients progress to debilitating fractures of the femoral head which require a total hip replacement without appropriate treatment, within two years of initial diagnosis," said Marc W. Hungerford, M.D., Assistant Professor of Orthopedics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. "This trial represents a novel and promising approach aimed at preserving the functional integrity of the hip joint. It could potentially eliminate the need to subject the patient to major surgery."

The tissues involved in osteonecrosis of the femoral head include bone, bone marrow and blood vessels (vascular), complicating the development of effective treatments in the past. Aastrom's TRC-based products, which include a proprietary mixture of stem and progenitor cells derived from a small sample of the patient's own bone marrow, have been used in other clinical trials involving different indications to evaluate regeneration in all three of these tissues. With this capability, the application of TRC Technology may offer a novel means to regenerate the tissues lost due to osteonecrosis.

This study initiation is Aastrom's second clinical trial evaluating the Company's TRC Technology in patients with osteonecrosis of the femoral head. In January, the Company announced it had treated the first two patients in a pivotal clinical trial for osteonecrosis in Spain.

[Lucas Scott]

Subject of this thread "Rebound Play" still applies. ASTM always seems to be in need of a rebound. I like it as a January Effect play and could be a good buy right now. The candles the last two days suggest a bottom. But stop out if it prints .56.

[setravis]

Aastrom Biosciences Reports Positive
Data from Compassionate Use Cardiac Patients
Aastrom Biosciences, Inc. (ASTM) announced encouraging data from
the first two compassionate use patients treated with the Company's
autologous stem cell therapy for dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), a type
of severe chronic heart failure. Hans Michael Klein, M.D., Professor of
Cardiac Surgery at the Dusseldorf University Hospital in Dusseldorf,
Germany performed the first human application of Aastrom's Cardiac
Repair Cell (CRC) product through direct injection into the heart muscle
during open heart surgery in two patients late in 2007. Due to the
promising results from these first patients using the CRC treatment,
Dr. Klein's clinical activity is ongoing and additional patients are being
evaluated for this treatment. The Company is on track for submission of
a U.S. Investigational New Drug (IND) application for a cardiac regeneration
clinical trial using CRCs during 2008. The Company's ultimate
target market for CRCs in the U.S. is 1.8 million no-option heart failure
patients, which includes patients suffering from DCM.

[setravis]

Indie Research
Stem Cell Enthusiasm Grows; The Pros Like Cytori
Tuesday January 27, 9:35 am ET
By the tickerspy.com Staff


There has long been a lot of hype surrounding the embryonic stem cell industry. Proponents of the therapy believe that the embryonic cells hold great promise, but advances have been stymied by rules put in place by the Bush administration.


Recently, however, biotech stocks focusing on stem cell research have surged higher on speculation that the Obama administration may soon lift stem cell restrictions. In addition, stem cell leader Geron (Nasdaq: GERN) received approval last week from the FDA to begin human trials on an embryonic stem cell-based treatment for spinal cord injuries. It will be the first human trial for stem cell therapy. Add it all up, and investors are suddenly interested in stem cell stocks again.

Because stem cell therapy is still such a young and unproven field, only a few Pro investors have exposure to the handful of stem cell pure plays. Among them is investment advisor P.R. Herzig, where portfolio managers describe themselves as "careful opportunists" and "contrarians by nature," according to the company website. At the end of Q3, the firm held a stake in Geron. A list of the other stocks among Herzig's top holdings is available at tickerspy.com.

Meanwhile, three Pro investors counted Cytori Therapeutics (Nasdaq: CYTX) among their top top-15, U.S.-listed equity holdings. Cytori makes devices that extract tissue and separate out stem cells.

tickerspy members are tracking stem cell stocks as well. The most popular stem cell stock among tickerspy members is StemCells (Nasdaq: STEM). Also popular are Aastrom Biosciences (Nasdaq: ASTM), Osiris (Nasdaq: OSIR), Neuralstem (AMEX: CUR), ThermoGenesis (Nasdaq: KOOL), Pluristem Therapeutics (Nasdaq: PSTI), and Opexa Therapeutics (Nasdaq: OPXA).

Pro portfolio performance is based on institutions' top-15 holdings as disclosed in quarter-end filings with the SEC. Pro performance does not take into account additional holdings beyond the top 15 nor does it include positions that are not required to be disclosed by the SEC. As such, Pro portfolio performance should be considered an approximation and not a precise record of how an institution has performed over time.

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