Replies to post #120075 on Biotech Values

[mcbio]

Another New Jersey company, Emisphere Technologies Inc., in December announced an exclusive licensing deal with the Danish drug giant Novo Nordisk to develop oral insulin. Many attempts to make an insulin pill have failed because the protein is quickly degraded by stomach acid. The companies have not predicted how long it will take them to develop a viable product.

At first blush, EMIS might seem a little interesting being partnered with one of the industry leaders in NVO on a novel diabetes project and having only an ~$80M market cap. But, EMIS's financials are a mess and they look like they are on the verge of bankruptcy. Per their 1Q11 results PR (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Emisphere-Technologies-Inc-pz-229402446.html?x=0&.v=1 ), existing cash only gets them to next month. Talk about a lack of leverage.