Catalyst Pharmaceutical (CPRX) shares rallied 6.7% in the last trading session to close at $27.68. This move can be attributable to notable volume with a higher number of shares being traded than in a typical session. This compares to the stock's 9% gain over the past four weeks.
Strong business momentum likely boosted investor confidence and drove the stock higher. Firdapse, approved for treating Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, continues to see solid growth, supported by expanded use, international launches and patent protection through 2035, which secures its long-term sales. Meanwhile, Agamree, approved for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, is gaining traction in the market and gives Catalyst a second revenue stream, reducing reliance on a single drug. Together with expansion opportunities in global rare-disease markets and a debt-free, cash-rich balance sheet, these factors signal stable growth and lower risk.
This specialty drug company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.63 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -7.4%. Revenues are expected to be $147.08 million, up 4% from the year-ago quarter.
Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.
For Catalyst, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. And a stock's price usually doesn't keep moving higher in the absence of any trend in earnings estimate revisions. So, make sure to keep an eye on CPRX going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.
The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
Catalyst belongs to the Zacks Medical - Drugs industry. Another stock from the same industry, USANA Health Sciences (USNA), closed the last trading session 1.4% lower at $19.24. Over the past month, USNA has returned 13.6%.
For USANA Health, the consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming report has changed -4.4% over the past month to $0.44. This represents a change of -39.7% from what the company reported a year ago. USANA Health currently has a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell).
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).