love this part.."The vitamin D drug is so promising that Dr. John Cannell, a physician and vitamin D expert, stunned Seeking Alpha followers with this revelation: “Three weeks ago, I invested all my available funds in OPKO Health Inc. I did that when I learned about its new vitamin D drug, Rayaldy.”
Designed to help 8 million U.S. patients, the drug’s potential market is $24 billion.
Researchers will soon publish results of the Phase 3 trials for this therapy that appears more effective and non-toxic compared with the two competitors.
“It’s important news,” Dr. Frost said. “We don’t expect to get 100 percent of the market but we are certainly interested in capturing several billion.
“That would make the present stock price look very small,” he said of the roughly $10 stock.
Second is the human growth hormone, a once-a-week therapy as opposed to the current daily use. OPK acquired the company behind this technology, Prolor Biotech, in April. The drug is in Phase 3 for adults and Phase 2 for children, aimed at a $3.5 billion market.
Third is a drug for nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy – a $1 billion to $1.5 billion market. OPK out-licensed the drug to Tesaro, which is conducting three separate Phase 3 trials on the product designed to help cancer patients up to a week. Following an expected new drug application submission in mid-2014 prior to commercialization, OPK would eventually stand to get about $130 million plus a royalty.
“They’re finishing their trials as we speak,” Dr. Frost said. “They should have top-line results by the end of December.”
Down the pipeline, a hemophilia drug - reaching for an estimated $1 billion market - is set to begin Phase 2 clinical trials in 2014.
Finally, a naturally occurring hormone product for fighting obesity has seen great success in animal studies, said Dr. Frost.
“That could be one of our most important drugs,” he said.
The company is also involved in developing diagnostic tests, including a potentially game-changing “4Kscore” prostate cancer test for patients with elevated PSA (prostate specific antigen). It is designed to cut the 70 percent rate of false positives and reduce unnecessary, costly biopsies of the prostate, which can be difficult and unpleasant. The test for use in laboratories has already launched in the United Kingdom and work has begun on a new version for doctors’ offices. OPK bought a laboratory in Tennessee to facilitate the U.S. launch.
“We’re gearing up to put it on the market right now,” said Dr. Frost.
Additionally OPK owns businesses in Spain, Chile, Israel and Mexico which are selling products, as well as a more recent entry into Brazil.
*CEO buys shares almost daily
Dr. Frost has continued his confident OPK buying spree that he began in 2007 - back then he got the Securities and Exchange Commission nod to quickly buy more than 4 million shares for $1.80 each and 35,800 shares on the open market for about $3 each shortly after he formed OPK in a March 2007 merger.
The chief executive is the company’s most informed of all the executives, of course. He’s never sold a single share of OPK.
He believes so much in the company that he’s made not one but 13 separate purchases of the stock so far just this month – with most of those running over $10 a share. Dr. Frost is truly putting his money where his mouth is because he bought the shares practically daily on the open market.
He has increased his stake over the years to more than 137 million shares worth more than $1.3 billion. A blazing 51 percent of available shares are held by insiders, including Dr. Frost’s 33 percent stake. With his $3 billion personal fortune and willingness to buy shares, Dr. Frost could dramatically shrink the size of the remaining float …
*More big believers
George Soros also has initiated a position and one of the world’s greatest investors is also a buyer. Through his Soros Fund Management in the third quarter, financial guru Soros gave his stamp of approval with a purchase of 745,000 shares of OPK. Also, Mario Gabelli, listed in the book, “The World’s 99 Greatest Investors,” now owns 15,000 shares of OPK.
The Soros purchase ranked as the 20th highest purchase for Soros between July and September. His fund spent $6.6 million on OPK shares. That purchase secured the number 16 spot for the quarter among the largest shareholders, including The Vanguard Group (11.5 million shares) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (10.2 million shares).
*Conclusion
Entrepreneur and TV celebrity Lori Greiner recently pointed out that entrepreneurs must have multiple talents to succeed in business.
“People can grow money all day long but if they don’t know what to do with it, then it’s really not very valuable,” Ms. Greiner said Friday on ABC’s Shark Tank.
Dr. Frost’s track record shows he can grow money and use it to navigate the intricacies of delivering life-saving therapies to people who desperately need them. He’s a brilliant chief executive who has won plenty of Street fights and looks poised to win this one, too.
We’re betting on one of Wall Street’s greatest minds.
News 
Market Data 
Discover 
