NEW YORK—Shares of biotechnology company Medarex Inc. rose Tuesday after a Needham & Co. analyst raised his rating on shares to "Buy" from "Hold," based on the company's pipeline and developments expected throughout the year.
Shares of Medarex rose 97 cents, or 13.8 percent, to $8.
"We believe Medarex stock is positioned to grow from here, based on progress with the internal programs as well as external partnered programs," Needham analyst Mark Monane wrote in a note to investors. "We expect significant newsflow throughout 2008 and into 2009 to generate increasing interest in Medarex stock."
Monane cited the presentation scheduled next month of data on Medarex's late-stage melanoma drug candidate ipilimumab as a possible catalyst. He also pointed to an upcoming presentation by partner Johnson & Johnson on study data for golimumab to treat rheumatoid arthritis.
On Monday, Princeton, N.J.-based Medarex reported that its first-quarter profit fell 6 percent, though the adjusted results beat analyst expectations.
