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Awareness is growing of Multistem's potential, Crush. I've owned ATHX for a few years and started adding after the first stroke trial. It's interesting to see how curative Multistem is because the results take time and originally, nobody except ATHX realized in the first trial that Multistem treatment was effective. The proof came at 6 months in the trial arm that was administered 30 hrs after a stroke. This arm actually outperformed standard of care treatment. Stunning! At 1 year, the results were even far more outstanding and obvious for this arm. I expect this same result to be proven again, as nothing else has ever had this same effect on stroke patients. Here's what's likely to happen, based on past investment trends. The first six months it will be very quiet. Then an interim report will come out and Multistem patients will be slightly improved. Some biotech writers might notice this. At one year, Multistem patients will have a full/near complete recovery from stroke. Then the fireworks will start in earnest. To watch this stock day by day is to watch water come to a boil. But when the final results of the trial start to come out, ATHX will be a rocket. Especially if the FDA approval rumors start. My suggestion is to buy on the dips and hold, and ignore the daily gripes from the peanut gallery on message boards. From everything I've seen and read for the past two years, ATHX has a very bright future. But it takes a long time to run a stroke trial because there is no "instant" fix. In fact, there is little else than Multistem to help stroke victims, especially after the first four hours of the stroke which is the only time window for current treatments. After four hours, a stroke victim today has little hope and little to help them recover, except physical therapy. Multistem will be welcomed with open arms by health professionals and patients alike when it is approved in the US, EU and Japan. All three administrative bodies are coordinated because current trials are so important to patients who suffer from strokes.
XR, thanks for posting an update on this Helios stroke trial in Japan. This trial is super important and I had been wondering about progress. It looks like ATHX was thoroughly on top of every detail and quickly caught the error in placebo -- testimony to their quality management team to get this trial done right. It's a confidence builder in ATHX. Please keep posting updates whenever possible.
Orangecat, is this the reason why CTSO opened the Swiss "sales" office near NVS's main operations??? Sounds fishy...a cover story, perhaps for ongoing research. I don't know. But it is strange that DC and June are collaborating, yet vague about specific details to include CytoSorb in NVS CAR-T research and development. You made a good point. June was quiet, DC was vaguely chatty. The tip of the iceberg showing. Just enough to be tantalizing and create speculation.
Bertha, Actemra has multiple side effects. Law suits.
D&C, 23,000 human treatments is shown at the company website today. But that number has been there for a while in a boilerplate investor document. Prior postings retained in my files include: Feb 2016, 9,000 human treatments; Feb 2014, 3,000 human treatments. The company is not good at posting this number. Bertha might know more. She has been watching it, too.
Bio, thanks for your analysis. Your last paragraph seems to get at the heart of the issue for both Spectral and CTSO in the U.S. and Canadian markets. The issue is all about how the FDA determines approval in this category. It is abundantly clear that CytoSorb reduces severe destructive inflammation. But, so far, this has NOT seemed important to the FDA. Then again, for a growing number of docs and hospitals in 40 countries where the FDA doesn't matter, this critical treatment option does matter for docs to regain control of gravely ill patients across a wide section of indications. As the result, CytoSorb continues to grow revenues quarter after quarter. CytoSorb may soon exceed 30,000 treatments. The rate of treatments is accelerating. As for Spectral, they have a completely different plan to reach the market. I wish you luck relying on the FDA. I'd rather be in CTSO.
CTSO's "Swiss Connection" to NVS and Car-T cell treatment became abundantly clear this week. I had wondered why that country had been chosen by CTSO for an EU office to serve Europe. Now it is obvious. Dr. June and NVS are based there. To your point Pears, CTSO needs a highly focused direction. Further research work and large scale trials involving Car-T treatment, propelled by NVS, could be it.
Pears, think globally because CytoSorb is approved in countries with over 2 billion in population that don't adhere to your ridid FDA limitations. We're seeing strong sales increases quarter after quarter from global sales. Please look beyond our borders! You'll see it's a big world out there that wants to use CytoSorb aggressively!!
Pears, Car-T can cause a short-term inflammation crisis after treatment begins. There is a critical window of perhaps 5 days when CytoSorb could be appropriate to quell a developing cytokine storm. As you know, Car-T reprograms the immune system, and sometimes the immune system restarts in overdrive. It can take a few days for this explosive response to calm down. CytoSorb can help during this window. I recall several CytoSorb notes in which it was discussed that CytoSorb can help to refocus and regulate an immune system that appears to be out of control. By the way, you might want to put NVS on a watchlist. It is up another 60 cents premarket today since an FDA committee recommended 10-0 last Thursday that the FDA adopt its Car-T treatment. KITE and JUNO could ride on this news, too. You might recall that both KITE and JUNO had deaths in their original FDA trials on their Car-T treatments, but have since recovered from those situations. Nobody discussed excessive inflammation, but it was likely part of those fatalities. Also, there are a number of small gene reprogramming companies and gene testing/analysis companies that could benefit as this kind of genomic treatment technique spreads, which is highly likely, given its effectiveness to completely eradicate tumors. Imagine, being cancer free in 30 days after living with tumors for a long period and having gone through chemo or radiation. IMHO, Car-T treatments will take hold, and perhaps be safer with CytoSorb to support recovery. It all makes sense.
Could it be? Maybe the new Investor Relations PR agency has good contacts and knows how to develop interest among various writers. If so, good start.
Good one, Pears! "BorisBeckar" huh? My apologies for putting words in your mouth last week. Still I believe you and "Boris" wouldn't be here if you didn't believe the beads work. Too many other opportunities that are easily found to waste time on CTSO unless it's the real thing. Nope, we're all here because we believe CytoSorb works and we're just waiting for the moment of "critical mass" for CTSO to ignite. With all the catalysts in place, it could happen at any time. Pavlov would love this stock. Keep pecking.
PSU, your info suggests CTSO will achieve $12+ million in revenues for 2017. Based on other catalysts, perhaps CTSO annual revenue will ramp up even more, possibly to $15-$16 million. Growth in sales are accelerating.
KFC, I'm betting Pears knows the filters work. He wouldn't be here if he didn't. He just wants CTSO management to make an intense, concentrated effort to gain FDA approval. To him, nothing else matters as he knows FDA approval will drive the business forward at high speed. As investors, we all want this. I'd add that the global market for the filters is very impressive. Remember, it is already approved in countries totaling 2 billion people. That's 6x the US population. So CTSO can be a highly profitable company without immediate approval in the US market. Revenues are already growing at +100% per year. Maybe we will see even a greater acceleration in Q2 results. Unexpected sales growth, perhaps in Africa where viral infection is an enormous problem, could change the dynamics of how the investment community looks at this stock. A sharp acceleration in German sales due to the new comprehensive insurance reimbursement could also be a nice surprise. If the filters gain greater traction in places like Russia, Italy, India and South America, then the comments about the FDA slow track approval will fade. CTSO has a lot of catalysts. As investors, we all want to see fast growing revenues. It doesn't matter where it comes from.
HadTo, your "sales" numbers are directionally correct, but they also include grant money. "Product sales" for CytoSorb are slightly lower. Your numbers are "total revenues." Just the same, I agree with your premise that the market should recognize the growth in sales...and the more than doubling of gross profit YoY in 2016 to about $5.5M. Should this trend persist which I believe it will, then investors should see the end to the downward trend in earnings (-$11M in 2016). This is the key factor to the market. CTSO must tell a compelling financial story with facts and figures in this next analysts' meeting. Investors want to see further acceleration in sales/revenues and an improvement in earnings. Then the stock price will go higher.
HadTo, you are wearing us out with your constant whining. Give it a rest. Little healthcare stocks are like this. High risk/high reward. CTSO will bounce, but not on your schedule. No telling when it will happen. So focus on something else. Spilling your guts multiple times a day is unpleasant. The rest of us know the score and have been through this many times over. It's just a routine part of the cycle. Crying about it doesn't help. As Pears says, just keeping it honest.
Dr. Chan was down $120,000 in value at one point today in his own shares. Do you think he has any motivation yet to start promoting CTSO to the investment community? Or will he remain mum and watch his own shares lose value? This company has positive news and nobody publishes a word. Block lost money today, too. You'd think she would step up since money is her business. Nope. Ditto old Chaney and the board. The new PR outfit is just window dressing if they can't get a simple PR release out the door. We heard that sales in Germany are back up and new reimbursement codes are working. Not a word from the company to update investors.
Aliberto, the dual tactical mistake of 1) selling stock under $5.00 and then 2) seeking shelf approval for 5 million new shares stung investors and funds holding shares. Maybe the stock price would have recovered quickly over $5.00 when the entire allotment under $5 was transacted so quickly. But then, Chan and Block in their combined wisdom decided they needed to put another 5 million shares on the shelf. So they made that announcement less than 30 days later. Oh, boy! Poor timing. First, they lowered the market price of the stock, then they asked us for a dilution. It was a double punch to shareholders. I don't think Chan is fully aware that he and Block caused the current share price weakness. He doesn't seem to know that the price point of $5 is magical for some funds -- $10 is another similar point. Some funds can only buy a stock over $5, but if it falls, they must sell their holdings under $5. Chan and Block triggered this selling. So here we languish at the bottom of the chart waiting for the next catalyst to occur. The only relief in sight short term is the end of Q2 in three weeks. BYW, Chan missed the perfect opportunity to provide some relief to shareholders by issuing a statement during the annual meeting last week, updating the German reimbursement switchover. I read on this board that Germany's sales are accelerating anew. Chan could have used this info to reassure investors. But he didn't. Maybe it takes too much effort? Maybe he thinks investors don't care? Summing up, he simply doesn't have a head for the investment community. Honestly, I try not to think about it. The product is so good and fills such an important need (regardless of Pears' snipes) that we should expect global growth to accelerate every quarter, continued reorder pattern strengthening, more 3rd party reimbursement approvals, and new indications to be discovered for a long time to come.
andy, another great post!
Set your own price target, HadTo. Price targets are the musing of individual analysts. There is no collusion among them. If CTSO doesn't perform to your liking, invest in something else. Keep it simple. Zacks has had a price target of about $12 for two years. So what? Zacks and Cowan don't buy stocks for the rest of us. They just publish their own opinions. What's most important with a tiny healthcare company is revenue acceleration, based on approvals and insurance reimbursements. It's a long haul, not an instant bump. It takes quarter after quarter of accelerating revenues, profit and earnings to realize significant gains. If you want to be a day trader and look for quick pops, those kinds of gains are driven by news flows. Don't expect it with CTSO. This is a long haul stock. Sales were about $8 million in 2016. This could double in 2017. The stock price would then stabilize and move up some. But it's not going to a hundred on $16 million in sales. If it doubles again in 2018 or accelerates further to around $40 million, then you will see some serious buying of CTSO. But until we reach those kinds of threshholds, hold your water and cool your jets. If you want to see what can happen to a stock that does that, look at SUPN. Bought it around 7 a few years ago, and it just hit 40. Why? Look at the acceleration in sales over the past few years. When CTSO puts up those kinds of numbers, it will fly too. But to rely on "analysts estimates" or this message board to drive up CTSO s/p is a fool's errand. GLTA.
Read the case histories of the week. They come from the Registry.
Thanks PSU, all makes sense. Sales should be reaccelerating. The new chief medical director looks very strong with FDA trial and approval experience. The slowness in moving forward with the FDA has hurt s/p and is perhaps caused by tentativeness and excessive caution on DC's part. He lacks confidence with the FDA, and appears to be too polite...not pushy enough...which is required to get things done. We'll see how CTSO's approach with FDA evolves in the next few months. The first signal will come when CTSO announces it is moving forward with the next trial on cardiac surgery. This announcement will push s/p higher, perhaps with a major move up.
Are shorts getting out of the way? Watching the ticket minute by minute near Thursday's close, the price was bobbing like a cork on very low volume trades. Every time price ticked up, it was immediately met with a sale lower. Looks like desperation trades to close out short positions before the annual meeting next week. At this point, it is hard to believe that any trader would buy a new short position. On the contrary, the risk is to the upside. Especially since it is likely that DC will reaffirm guidance that the switchover to better insurance reimbursements in Germany is on track and product sales have regained momentum. CTSO should go modestly higher over the next 10 trading days. Plus, the 2nd quarter is in its final weeks now, so fresh accelerating quarterly sales should overtake last quarter's flatness. But to be sure, it has been tough to hold long positions in CTSO through this period. Perhaps 2Q numbers will indicate that CTSO revenues will likely double in 2017, especially if DC and Block point to continued growth in various revenue streams from around the globe. Personally, I wish DC and Block would provide more info about the numbers, and less about medical stuff. DC tends to think he is talking to other doctors, so the business details get glossed over. Investors need more light shed on distributors, key customers, various foreign markets and growth of global segments.
Pears, the new hire looks decisive about setting up FDA trials. Let's see how fast he goes into action. He could be the answer we have been waiting for.
Pears, fresh legs! Dr. Eric G. Mortensen, M.D., Ph.D., looks like a good fit as Chief Medical Officer. His credentials identify him as a pro at managing FDA trials and working with the FDA to gain approvals. Nice track record. Perhaps he'll light a fire under the cardiac surgery pivotal trial and finally move it into a high gear.
Read Techxen's PR post, especially the 2 paragraphs at the end on Dr. Reinhart and his role at the University of Jena where the CytoSorb registry is managed. Ask yourself: how could the WHA ignore the gains made in managing sepsis with blood filtration? The connection is clear. The WHA knows that tiny CTSO doesn't have the money, like a Bristol Myers, to promote its sepsis indication. CTSO operates on a shoe string. So this $4.6 million fund will, in part, tell docs about (CytoSorb) blood filtration. Don't think so? Read it closely again. This info wasn't included in this PR release for no reason.
“Worldwide, sepsis is one of the most common deadly diseases, and it is one of the few conditions to strike with equal ferocity in resource-poor areas and in the developed world,” said Dr. Konrad Reinhart, Chairman of the Global Sepsis Alliance. “In the developed world, sepsis is dramatically increasing by an annual rate of 5-13 per cent over the last decade, and now claims more lives than bowel and breast cancer combined. When sepsis is quickly recognized and treated, lives are saved but health care providers need better training because they are the critical link to preventing, recognizing, and treating sepsis.”
Dr. Konrad Reinhart is the Director of the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine at the University of Jena, and the Chairman of the Global Sepsis Alliance and founding President of the German Sepsis Society, and the head of the SepNet sepsis trials network – a consortium of leading hospitals and intensivists throughout Germany who organized and ran government funded sepsis trials. University of Jena is where the multi-national registry for Cytosorb usage is being managed under the direction of the internationally renowned sepsis researcher Professor Dr. med. Frank Brunkhorst.
Looks like WHA is pumping $4.6 Million into CytoSorb/sepsis marketing efforts... Techxen, great find. WHA says it believes stronger "physician education" efforts are needed to spread the word about how to identify and treat sepsis. The connection to CTSO is crystal clear. WHA knows that CTSO has never had that kind of money for marketing and educational efforts. So they are stepping up. This is great news!
The answer might depend on the country and hospital in which treatment is provided. For instance, Germany is a primary medical treatment location where many injured GIs are transported before they return to the US. CytoSorb is approved in Germany and locally available. If a GI is being treated at a local German hospital, he or she would receive the same care as a German patient. It certainly is curious that DC has been invited to make this presentation to a military healthcare gathering.
kfcyahoo, exactly right. All CTSO financials improving steadily.
Big Block Stock Purchases Starting Check the chart. End of Day 5/19 and morning of 5/22. Big Volume spikes up. Accumulation trend beginning, as ATHX moves into late stage FDA fast track study in US. Plus Japanese approval process for stroke indication gets moving. At this low sp, investors and traders are looking at a multi-bag winner.
$10 million contract news with just 2 weeks before Annual Meeting. Perhaps DC and Block woke up to the need to tell investors more about the financial side of the business. The PR today about the Italian distributor agreement was good, featuring the value of the contract, estimated at $10 million, right at the top of the story. Also, the growth of product uses, typical indications, investigator studies, etc., in Italy is important stuff. Investors are hungry for this kind of hard facts.
HadTo, CTSO beat earnings estimates by +6 cents. Great news! For any other company, this news would immediately draw positive attention to the stock price. (I remind you, the company press release didn't nor DC nor Block mention the quarterly earning results in their remarks...why not, the losses are nearly evaporated?...which led investors to doubt the company's progress.) CTSO is going to be a cash cow in the years ahead, but I'm with Pears. Progress has been slow. DC is trying to make this company profitable on a very tight budget. Heck, I admire that. And, look at the alliances that he has put together. Fresenius is the number one dialysis company in the world. There are many other great partners, too. Look at the number of countries where the product is sold -- over 2 billion in population. Pears constantly pushes and pressures CTSO to do more faster. But that doesn't negate the fact that progress has been steady. Directionally, everything is right. Speed, no. Also, if the rate of revenue acceleration holds true from last year, CTSO will post about $16 million in revenues in 2017 -- about double 2016. With nearly a 70% gross margin, the enormous cash flow potential of this company starts to come into view. My complaint about DC is he is not a pusher. He's a nice guy. He accepts delays. (Personally, I was never was allowed to accept delays in business.) Pears also wants more progress on the FDA front, and I'd love to see it too. But I can't ignore the company continues on a strong path to global acceptance of CytoSorb with a total addressable market in the billions. In less than 5 years, sales could be $100 million or more. As this becomes progressively more apparent, the share price should make great strides. We'll see.
Pears, CTSO beat expectations last quarter. The negative headline that the AP featured in its Q1 results article (written by a robot) also had two key facts buried: CTSO quarterly "results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of three analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 11 cents per share. (CTSO came in at -.05, a six cent beat.) The blood purification therapy company posted revenue of $3.1 million in the period, also exceeding Street forecasts. Three analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $3 million." I wasn't thrilled about the way DC and KB handled the quarterly announcement. Obviously, a negative headline by the AP carried more weight with short-attention-span traders. Just the same, we should recognize that CTSO continues to grow rapidly with accelerating revenues. Just the same, like you, I want to see management light a fire under its team and speed up every aspect of this business. They have to think ahead and execute! I mean, to think a robot writing a news story carried more weight than the company's press release (devoid of key financial metrics) and its hour-long conference call which made no effort whatsoever to explain the changeover to better insurance reimbursement snags. Despite these negatives, CTSO has an incredible future or you and I wouldn't be here. I just take issue with management being too polite and standing around in patent leather shoes waiting for things to happen. That isn't getting the job done. DC needs to put on some track shoes, a whistle in his mouth, start rally the troops and start showing more oomph. PUSH HARDER!
Jacque, the first story that appeared when the quarter info was released had a headline "CTSO Missed." I listened to the entire call. The only mention by Block or DC about the unexpected softness in product sales came when a question was asked by an analyst. DC's response sounded defensive to me. Companies should never try to hide basic financial info. Serious investors will hunt it down and quick. In fact, new insurance reimbursements actually benefit users more with higher insurance reimbursements. This is good news and further validation of CytoSorb's effectiveness and ability to save hospitals money by shortening hospital stays. DC could have spun this very positively immediately in the call and in the company's PR announcement. He also could have explained what the company was doing to expedite the new insurance process, talking with hospital customers, getting them prepared, updating them with new codes...something, anything that made the company seem helpful! He also could have added some color with comments from the biggest German customers who are dealing first-hand with the new reimbursement process and passed on their comments about what a pain in the ass it is to make the switchover in their billing departments. Instead, it made CTSO look bad. It was a dumb mistake by DC and Block. I hope they learned from this mistake. There is nothing wrong with CTSO's sales trend. But giving someone else a reason to be suspicious is wrong. We're suffering for it today. CTSO had a great opportunity to tell everyone the process is rapidly getting back on track, and it didn't. Our loss. The only consolation is that DC and Block also own shares...and our suffering is their suffering, too.
Bertha, CTSO is going to rocket forward in sales in Q217. I have no doubt that the problems with the German reimbursement switchover to new codes is nothing more than a pain in the butt. Red tape problems. Send in the old code by mistake...get kicked back the forms from the insurer...fix the codes...resubmit...rinse and repeated hundreds of times across multiple institutions. Insurance companies never make it easy to collect money. They will delay and delay endlessly, just in the USA. My major complaint at this moment is the lack of CTSO execution to help hospitals get these new codes right, and to help make the process to the new code system seamless. Good sales teams figure this stuff out ahead of time. They are proactive. CTSO talked in the last quarter as if this would all happen magically. Completely caught off guard what happened. Sure DC is a good guy, but his total focus is on the medical research stuff. Someone in management needs to step up and get things moving. Create urgency. Make everyone on the team know that they can make growth happen faster. DC is not that kind of guy.
Incredible development -- FDA Fast Track Designation! Investors who have followed this company for a long time are aware of the many years of progress on the books that MultiStem has made for extending the treatment window for Ischemic Stroke and for improving patient outcomes following a stroke. This is just incredibly significant. The market is sound asleep on this information. But this news can't stay quiet long. Management stated this week that the FDA now is pushing ATHX forward complete Phase III and, at the same time, a similar study is also moving forward in Japan. Per the most recent SEC filing: "We completed our Phase 2 study of MultiStem treatment of patients suffering a moderate to severe ischemic stroke and announced the one-year follow-up data and final results from the study in February 2016. We are actively engaged in advancing the next stage of clinical development of this program, both independently and with HEALIOS K.K., or Healios. In September 2016, we announced that we received agreement from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, under a Special Protocol Assessment, or SPA, for the design and planned analysis of a pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial of MultiStem cell therapy for the treatment of ischemic stroke. With the announcement of the FDA Fast Track designation, this pivotal trial will begin shortly. Management also announced gearing up of its manufacturing/processing operations, a clear signal that MultiStem will reach the market. With no competition to fulfill this urgent unmet need, MultiStem presents us with a unique investment opportunity. Low entry points won't be here once the bloggers start spreading the word.
Orangecat, good recalling how DC made us all aware months ago of the importance of reducing free hemoglobin in prolonged cardiac surgeries for certain patients. It sounds impressive and important. But I wonder why it takes so long for the FDA to light a fire under the next study phase. The data exist to prove the CytoSorb is an excellent product for further study. We know the aging population is having these types of surgeries with more frequency every year. Yet the FDA and CTSO seem to have no urgency to getting the next study phase done. It's baffling to me, as if a bunch of docs in patent leather shoes are sitting around a conference table simply waiting for the next pot of coffee to be served while they chat idly about it. Pears would agree that the lack of urgency, the lack of pushing by CTSO and the lack of pulling by the FDA to get this product approved begs the question of who is running the show. Someone needs to bust through this logjam and light a fire under the Cardiac Surgery Indication. People in the US are recovering slower, enduring more serious complicating events and perhaps even dying without CytoSorb to aid their recoveries after cardiac surgery. All we can do is sit as investors, watch the clock tick by tick, and wait for Phase II/III to get into gear. Yawn...Tick.....Tock...Tick...Tock
KITE might be receptive now to using CytoSorb with CAR-T treatments. Notice how KITE dropped like a stone yesterday. One patient in 300 person CAR-T studied died. It was the result of excessive inflammation. Very weak and very ill patient with no other options left, so he tried CAR-T treatment. Guy expired in two days. KITE's product is a good one, and will likely still be on track for FDA approval. But the issue remains that CAR-T treatment can elevate inflammation to an extreme level. CytoSorb is a possible solution to mitigate inflammation without complicating matters with additional drugs. CTSO's new hire with CAR-T background might be on the phone to KITE today????
Typical start-up of improved insurance reimbursement paperwork hurt German sales. Look closely at the quarter numbers. If you compare product sales from the prior quarter, they dipped slightly in Q1. This is what is hurting SP today. But the reason for the slight fall-off is the start-up of new insurance codes. This is just so typical of the friction and red tape between medical insurance industry and the billing departments of medical service providers. DC talked very little about this, simply reassuring everyone that this problem is temporary. In one month, we'll probably hear at the annual meeting that reimbursements are flowing nicely again. This means greater income to hospitals for using CytoSorb as the new reimbursement includes the cost to "implement" Cytosorb, meaning they get paid to connect it and dispose of it. Mo' money, mo' money. Temporary problem.
Look for a good earnings report as we move into May. DC's conference call is ahead by only a few weeks. Sales in Germany should gain greater strength with solid insurance reimbursement now approved. More docs and more hospitals there will be adding CytoSorb to ICU treatment and cardiac procedures. Distributor sales from Fresenius will also add to upward pressures on accelerating revenues. Fresenius has been named in multiple case histories, which they must be using to market their own machines with CytoSorb. The combo technologies are highly effective. Considering new distributors, too, that are adding countries in Africa, with growth in Russia, India and other emerging distributor sales. The sales rate projected ahead after Q117 number release should indicate roughly +/- $18 million in sales annually, which would represent about 100% growth in revenues in 2017. It may be even more. After all, to accomplish this, quarterly sales only need to rise 20% in Q1. And, then replicate that each quarter...this should be easy for CTSO to do given it is simply the persistence of the trend already in place. By the 4Q17, sales could be roughly $5.5 million. Do the math. Look ahead. Chan has also said gross margin can increase to +/- 80% -- up from the current 60%+. This company is gradually growing into a cash cow. This is why 2.2 million shares at a discounted price got snapped up in a matter of days.
Another great quarter in the books. Sales doubled last year and will continue on trend in 2017. Remember, a full year of reimbursement by third parties is ahead in Germany. More third-party EU approvals are likely ahead. Indications for use are increasing. The African distributorship also indicates increased interest in using CytoSorb for serious infections. Fresenius is pumping Cytosorb. There are too many catalysts in place to drive revenues and earnings higher this year. It takes a long time to build a company like this with a unique medical disposable product. Momentum is growing. Margins are excellent, reorder patterns are excellent and expansion into new markets is excellent. Plus, the FDA Cardiac Surgery Pilot study results are excellent, with CTSO gaining early awareness among cardiac docs. These are good indications the FDA will likely give approval for a pivotal Cardiac Surgery trial to start this year. 2018 approval is a possibility and cardiac docs want this product which can control free hemoglobin. Ignore all the positives are your peril. At today's price, this is the best growth stock bargain available anywhere. Slappie, you might be bearish and even short CTSO. You sure don't know this company from your remarks. Stay in that short position and you will be badly hurt. This stock can return to $5.50 in an eyeblink, and then run higher from there.