Biotech /Pharma Stock Trading Alert: Antares (NYSE Amex: AIS) Doubles From December 15th Lows

Tallahassee, FL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) -- Investorideas.com, an investor research portal specializing in sector research including biotech and pharma stocks, issues a trading alert and updated commentary from Josh Levine of the Levine MicroCap Newsletter, for Antares Pharma, Inc. (NYSE Amex: AIS).

In an Alert in mid December, Levine said the negative results on LibiGel’s Phase III trials for efficacy, which were issued by AIS partner BioSante Pharmaceuticals is “only a minor bump in the road for Antares. Today’s 30%-plus drop in AIS shares is an overreaction and the stock will rebound fully in time.” He concluded: “If you don't own AIS, I recommend taking advantage of this anomaly. If you were considering adding to your current position, this is the time to move.”

Levine followed up on December 30 with this comment about AIS: “Antares has surged 30% in two weeks and is again trading above its 200-day moving average. The market quickly and correctly recognized that the LibiGel event does nothing to tarnish the company’s outlook, which has never been stronger.”

Today, the stock is trading at $3.30, up strongly from its sell off and low of $1.51 on December 15th. As the chart below illustrates, AIS shares have experienced some wild swings during the past year. Most notable was the plunge taken in December.

The shares traded as high as $3.45 on March 26, marking a gain of more than 100% in less than four months. AIS is now higher than its 2011 peak and trading at a level it hasn’t seen in a decade.

“When big inefficiencies in the market arise for small stocks, it presents great buying opportunities,” says Levine. “Understand that every situation is different and we must weigh a range of factors, starting with the news or event that caused the drop. In the case of AIS, it was abundantly clear the event was equivalent to a minor scratch, and the market’s overreaction was a gift for investors.”

About Josh Levine and Levine's MicroCap Investor www.levinesmicrocapinvestor.com

Josh Levine has 25 years of senior-level experience in analyzing technology trends and investing in top-performing micro- and small-cap stocks.

About Antares Pharma, Inc. (NYSE Amex: AIS)

Antares Pharma focuses on self-injection pharmaceutical products and topical gel-based medicines. The Company's subcutaneous and intramuscular injection technology platforms include VIBEX™ disposable pressure-assisted auto injectors, disposable multi-use pen injectors and Vision™ reusable needle-free injectors distributed as Tjet® and Zomajet® by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd (Teva) and Ferring Pharmaceuticals (Ferring), respectively. In the injector area, Antares Pharma has a multi-product deal with Teva that includes Tev-Tropin® human growth hormone (hGH) and a partnership with Ferring that includes Zomacton® hGH. In the gel-based area, the Company's FDA approved product is Anturol® gel, an oxybutynin ATD™ gel for the treatment of OAB (overactive bladder) which has been licensed to Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. for the U.S. and Canada. Antares’ partnership with BioSante includes LibiGel® transdermal testosterone gel in Phase 3 clinical development for the treatment of female sexual dysfunction (FSD), and Elestrin® estradiol gel indicated for the treatment of moderate-to-severe vasomotor symptoms associated with menopause, and currently marketed in the U.S. Antares Pharma has two facilities in the U.S. The Parenteral Products Division located in Minneapolis, Minnesota directs the manufacturing and marketing of the Company’s reusable needle-free injection devices and related disposables, and develops its disposable pressure-assisted auto injector and pen injector systems. The Company’s corporate offices and Pharma Division are located in Ewing, New Jersey, where pharmaceutical products are developed utilizing both the Company’s transdermal systems and drug/device combination products.

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Movers: Spanish Broadcasting (SBSA) +44%; Princeton National (PNBC) +43%; FriendFinder (FFN) -16%

Tomahawk, WI 3/30/2012 (TradersCorner) -- Today's gainers and losers brought to you by Traders' Corner are as follows: Spanish Broadcasting (SBSA) was up 44 percent after announcing strong financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year; Princton National Bancorp (PNBC) was up 43 percent on heavy volume with no recent news; and FriendFinder Networks (FFN) was down 16 percent after announcing disappointing financial results.

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Longhai Steel Inc. (OTCBB: LGHS) Announces 2011 Sales Revenue of $608 Million, a 28% Increase

Tallahasee, FL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) -- Longhai Steel Inc. ("Longhai") (OTCBB: LGHS), a producer of high-quality steel wire products in the People's Republic of China, today announced financial results for the year ended December 31, 2011.

Financial highlights for 2011 include:

• 2011 steel wire sales revenue of $608 million compared with revenues of $475 million for 2010, an increase of $133 million, or 28%
• 2011 gross profit of $18.7 million compared to gross profit of $18.6 million for 2010, an increase of $100,000
• 2011 net income of $11.2 million, or $1.12 per fully diluted share, compared with net income of $11.3 million for 2010, a decrease of $100,000
• At December 31, 2011, shareholder's equity of $57.5 million, or $5.72 per fully diluted share
• At December 31, 2011, no long term debt

Financial highlights for Fourth Quarter 2011 include:

• Fourth Quarter 2011 steel wire sales revenue of $197.3 million compared with revenues of $144.5 for the same period of 2010, an increase of 36.5%
• Fourth Quarter 2011 net income of $6.3 million compared with net income of $4.6 million for the same period of 2010, an increase of 36.4%

Mr. Steven Ross, Executive Vice President of Longhai, said, "We are pleased to report record sales for 2011, largely driven by the opening of our new production facility in the fourth quarter of 2011. As the newly-opened steel wire facility continues to ramp output, we expect to see continued year-over-year improvements in operating results throughout 2012. During the first quarter of 2012 we also reconstituted our Board of Directors and transitioned to a new auditing firm, Marcum Bernstein & Pinchuk, LLP, both significant steps toward our goal of moving to a senior exchange.

Once fully ramped, the new facility will increase our overall capacity by approximately 60%, and have the capability to produce such high margin products as alloy steel, cold forging steel and welding rods. Over the next two quarters we expect to begin utilizing higher quality steel billets, which will enable us to produce higher quality and higher margin products for additional markets beyond construction and infrastructure."

About Longhai Steel Inc.

Longhai Steel Inc. is a leading producer of high quality steel wire. Downstream manufacturers process Longhai's wire into screws, nails, and wire mesh used to reinforce concrete and for fencing. Longhai's newly-opened second production facility also produces higher quality steel wire for specialized applications such as steel wire rope, steel strand, steel belted radial tires, and steel welding rod. All of its sales are delivered in China. Longhai competes using advanced production equipment and process technology, high product quality, fast order fill, and competitive prices. Its rolling and drawing facilities are among the most advanced in the world.

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InterOil (NYSE: IOC) and Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO) Face Tough Times in Refining Business

Tallahasee, FL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) -- Refineries dip despite high gasoline prices. The national average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas climbed to $3.898 on Tuesday. But the high prices still aren't enough to save some U.S. oil refiners, who are finding it a terrible time to be in the gasoline business. The Paragon Report examines the outlook for companies in the Oil & Gas Refining Industry and provides equity research on InterOil Corporation (NYSE: IOC) and Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE: VLO).

"Yet high crude costs are proving difficult to pass on to the consumers. That has made refining -- which once was considered a must-have business for many large energy companies -- unprofitable and unfashionable," Tom Fowler wrote in a recent article for the Wall Street Journal.

Gasoline demand in the U.S. has dropped drastically in past years. The major factors have been the 2008 recession, greater use of biofuels, and the growing fuel efficiency in U.S. vehicles. In December, Americans drove 264.4 billion miles, up 1.3% from the year before, but did so using 2.5% less gasoline and diesel, according to data from the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Energy Information Administration.

InterOil recorded a net profit for the year ended December 31, 2011 of $17.7 million, compared with a net loss of $44.5 million for the same period in 2010, an improvement of $62.2 million. The operating segments of Corporate, Midstream Refining and Downstream collectively returned a net profit for the year of $82.3 million.

Valero Energy announced that due to unfavorable refinery economics and the outlook for continued unfavorable refinery economics, refining operations will be suspended by the end of the month at its subsidiary's 235,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Aruba. The refinery has been operating at reduced rates because of inadequate margins resulting in financial losses.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Finish Line (Nasdaq: FINL) 4Q profit up, shares fall on outlook

Tallahasee, FL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) -- Sneaker and athletic clothing retailer The Finish Line Inc (Nasdaq: FINL). said Friday that its fourth-quarter profit jumped 22 percent, boosted by double-digit jumps in both in-store and online sales.

The earnings were roughly in line with Wall Street predictions, but the Indianapolis-based company projected a lower-than-expected fiscal first-quarter profit. Its shares tumbled 14 percent inmorning trading.

Also on Friday, Finish Line said that Denver-based private equity firm Gart Capital Partners will invest $10 million in its running specialty group. The group's headquarters will be relocated to Denver and Gart will manage its day-to-day operations.

3.48For the quarter ended March 3, Finish Line reported net income of $41.9 million, or 80 cents per share, up from $34.3 million, or 63 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

Excluding impairment charges, the company said it posted an adjusted profit of 81 cents per share for the recent quarter, matching the average estimate of analysts polled by FactSet.

Revenue rose 19 percent to $456.3 million from $384.6 million, topping average Wall Street estimates of $432.6 million.

Sales at stores open at least a year, a key measure for retailers that excludes stores recently opened or closed, rose 11 percent. Digital sales, which are included in that measure, jumped 38 percent.

For fiscal year 2012, the company earned $84.8 million, or $1.59 per share, up from $68.8 million, or $1.26 per share. Revenue rose to $1.37 billion from $1.23 billion.

For the fiscal first quarter, Finish Line said it expects a same-store sales increase in the "mid-single digit range," but because of planned investments, lower margins and a shift in the promotional calendar, earnings per share for the quarter are expected to be down about 30 percent.

Based on the company's year-ago profit of 30 cents per share, the guidance implies a current-quarter profit of 21 cents per share. Analysts polled by FactSet expect earnings of 36 cents per share.

For the current fiscal year, Finish Line said it expects to post earnings per share and same-store sales growth in the "mid-single digits." And as the company begins to reap the benefits of investments in its technology and stores, earnings per share growth should increase to the "low- to mid-teens" beginning in fiscal 2014.

Finish Line shares dropped $3.54, or 14 percent, to $21.80 in morning trading. They had hit a 52-week high of $26.16 on Monday. They are 33 percent above their low for the past year of $16.42 set in mid-August.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Vivus (Nasdaq: VVUS), Arena (Nasdaq: ARNA) Unlikely to Be Affected by FDA Obesity Panel

Chicago, IL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) – Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ARNA) and Vivus Inc. (Nasdaq: VVUS), competing to win U.S. regulatory approval for weight-loss treatments, probably won’t be affected by an advisory panel’s recommendation for heart-risk studies, a Food and Drug Administration spokeswoman said.

The panel voted 17-6 yesterday in Silver Spring, Maryland, to recommend that companies developing weight-loss therapies should conduct clinical trials to assess heart danger or review pre-approval human trial data on heart attacks and strokes. The panel’s goal was to help the agency update guidelines for bringing obesity treatments to market, Erica Jefferson, a spokeswoman for the FDA, said in an e-mail today.

“It’s unlikely that the discussions over the past couple days will impact any existing applications,” Jefferson said.

Vivus, Arena and a third California-based company, Orexigen Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: OREX), are racing to bring the first weight-loss pill to market in 13 years. The fen-phen appetite-suppression drug combination was pulled from pharmacies 15 years ago when it was linked to heart-valve abnormalities.

Vivus rose 7.5 percent to $22.88 at 9:43 a.m. New York time. Arena increased 1.6 percent to $3.09 and Orexigen fell 3.5 percent to $4.38.

The FDA is set to make a decision on Mountain View, California-based Vivus’s drug Qnexa by April 17. San Diego-based Arena’s treatment lorcaserin faces an advisory panel May 10, with the agency expected to make a decision by June 27.

Orexigen agreed in September with the FDA to conduct a two- year study of heart risks for the drug Contrave. The La Jolla, California-based company is a partner with Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. (4502), based in Osaka, Japan.

Two-Tiered Studies

Panel members agreed studies should be two tiered: pre- and post-approval. Companies should rule out a certain degree of risk during pre-approval and further prove the drugs don’t cause excessive heart harm after the medicines are on the market, advisers said during discussion. The FDA isn’t required to follow the panel’s guidance.

The panel voted Feb. 22 that Qnexa’s benefits outweigh its risks. Sanjay Kaul, a professor in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA Cedar Sinai Medical Center and a panel member, said the treatment works the best to help patients lose weight, giving it a good chance of the FDA requiring post-approval studies on heart risk instead of additional ones before.

The last obesity drug the FDA approved was Roche Holding AG (Pinksheets: RHHBY)’s Xenical in 1999.Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) withdrew its obesity treatment Meridia in 2010 after a post-market trial revealed a 16 percent increase in risk of heart attack or stroke in those taking the product over those using a placebo and little difference in weight loss.

Arena is studying its compound lorcaserin to assess cancer risks. The company is in a partnership with Tokyo’s Eisai Co. (4523)

The FDA previously has rejected all three drugs, asking for more data on safety risks, including the likelihood of birth defects associated with Qnexa.

More than 78 million U.S. adults are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Obesity raises the risks of diabetes, heart attacks and stroke, and costs the U.S. economy an estimated $147 billion a year in medical expenses and lost productivity, according to the CDC.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Threshold Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: THLD) Receives US Orphan Drug Designation for TH-302

Chicago, IL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) – Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: THLD) today announced the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation for TH-302, a hypoxia-targeted drug, for the treatment of soft tissue sarcoma.

"Following our announcement on March 16 regarding the receipt of orphan drug designation in the EU, we are pleased to also have US orphan designation in place," said Barry Selick, Ph.D., CEO of Threshold. "The results of our Phase 2 study (TH-CR-403) in soft tissue sarcoma are certainly supportive of a pivotal trial underway in this difficult to treat cancer."

Threshold Pharmaceuticals is conducting a pivotal Phase 3 study (TH-CR-406) in soft tissue sarcoma comparing TH-302 in combination with doxorubicin against single agent doxorubicin. The same combination regimen of TH-302 with doxorubicin was investigated in the single-arm Phase 2 (TH-CR-403) study. Data from this Phase 2 study were most recently presented at the Connective Tissue Oncology Society (CTOS) meeting in October of 2011. In February 2011, Threshold Pharmaceuticals announced that it had reached agreement with the FDA on a Special Protocol Assessment for the Phase 3 study which includes a primary efficacy endpoint of overall survival. The international, randomized, controlled Phase 3 clinical trial was initiated in September 2011, and is being conducted in partnership with the Sarcoma Alliance for Research through Collaboration (SARC). The trial is designed to enroll 450 patients with metastatic or locally advanced unresectable soft tissue sarcoma.

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ImmunoGen (Nasdaq: IMGN) Rises After Drug Delays Cancer Worsening in Study

Chicago, IL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) – ImmunoGen Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN) rose the most in almost a year after partner Roche Holding AG (Pinksheets: RHHBY) said a breast cancer drug delayed the disease worsening in a patient study.

ImmunoGen climbed as much as 16 percent to $15.87, the biggest intraday gain since April 11, 2011. It was up 12 percent to $15.31 at 9:37 a.m. New York time. The Waltham, Massachusetts-based company rose 60 percent in the year before today.

Patients who received the medicine, T-DM1, lived “significantly” longer without their disease progressing compared with those who received a combination of GlaxoSmithKline Plc (Nasdaq: GSK)’s Tykerb and Roche’s Xeloda, Basel, Switzerland-based Roche said in a statement today. Roche is developing T-DM1 with technology it licensed from ImmunoGen.

The trial hasn’t been running long enough to show whether the drug also extended women’s lives, Roche said. Roche said it plans to apply for regulatory approval for T-DM1, also known as trastuzumab emtansine, in Europe and the U.S. this year.

“This lends further credibility to Roche’s ability to protect and increase its breast cancer revenues despite the likely appearance of biosimilar Herceptin,” analysts led by Mark Purcell atBarclays Capital wrote in a note today.

Biosimilars are lower-cost versions of complex drugs made from living organisms.

The treatment combines Roche’s Herceptin, which brought in $6 billion in 2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, with an older chemotherapy.

T-DM1 is a so-called “armed antibody” that combines Herceptin with DM1, which is derived from an old chemotherapy medicine called maytansine. That drug was found to be too toxic for patients in clinical trials two decades ago. ImmunoGen’s technology enabled chemists to fuse DM1 to Herceptin in such a way that it isn’t activated until Herceptin shepherds it directly to the cancer cell.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration rejected a request in 2010 to accelerate the regulatory process.

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Ku6 (Nasdaq: KUTV) ties up with Channel V, shares rise

Orlando, FL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) – Chinese online video portal Ku6 Media Co Ltd (Nasdaq:KUTV) said it signed an agreement with satellite television company Star China to launch Channel V's online channel on Ku6's platform, sending its shares up 18 percent in morning trade on Friday.

The company said the online channel will feature the international music channel's current and upcoming music entertainment programs in China. Ku6 will be responsible for non-content operations of the channel.

"This will strengthen our position in the online music entertainment area," Ku6 Chief Executive Jeff Shi said in a statement.

Ku6 shares were up 14 percent at $2.36 on Friday morning on the Nasdaq. They rose to $2.45 earlier in the session.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Andes Gold Corp (AGCZ) Stock Chart Analysis Video

Orlando, FL 3/30/12 (StreetBeat) -- Stock Chart Analysis on Andes Gold Corp (Pinksheets: AGCZ)