This article was written on the 17/feb/2010..When ATL news hits...

This article was written on the 17/feb/2010..
When ATL news hits in early 2012 ..will the sp run to 20c?



The speculators then turned their attention to fellow biotech Antisense Therapeutics, which announced that its prostate-cancer treatment ATL1101 would be favourably reviewed in a journal. Antisense also announced that a subset of ATL1101 would be protected by an Australian patent.

While the company described the news as "value-adding outcomes", it's hard to see why the disclosure justified the ensuing 300 per cent share price hike (from 5c to a peak of 20c). A peer review is nice, but merely confirmation of previously released trial results. Securing a patent is reassuring, but pretty much expected and part of an ongoing process.

"Antisense was very surprised at the level of turnover given the announcement we had made," Antisense spokesman Simon Watkin says.

One natural reaction is to be horrified at the ephemeral nature of the gains. Another is: How do I get in on the game by pre-empting the smart guys' next move?

A feature of the buying is that it follows rather than anticipates an ASX announcement. This reduces suspicion on the part of the market surveillance people, as there's an ostensible reason for the share rally.

Identifying these likely targets is easier said than done.

Biotech watcher David Langsam of Biotech Daily says the stocks need to be inherently undervalued in the first place, as opposed to those that are penny dreadfuls because they're close to running out of money.