What caused this enormous growth? Why is the stock’s price moving like a rollercoaster? And should I be adding it to my portfolio? Let’s take a look.

What’s going on with the Tiziana Life Sciences (TILS) share price?

Tiziana Life Sciences is a small biotech company that is developing targeted drugs for various afflictions, including cancer, inflammatory diseases and, more recently, Covid-19. The latter appears to be the primary driving force behind the recent share price boost.

There are plenty of other biotech companies attempting to create an effective anti-body treatment for the virus. And therefore the competition is fierce. However, what makes this company stand out is the method of administration. Instead of the classical intravenous approach, Tiziana Life Sciences delivers its monoclonal anti-bodies via inhalation. As a result, the treatment is absorbed directly within the patient’s lungs, where Covid-19 does the most damage.

Throughout 2020, a continual stream of positive preliminary results was published for this treatment, along with its other projects surrounding Crohn’s disease and progressive multiple sclerosis. And so I’m not surprised that the share price has been rising.

Taking a step back

While positive results are undoubtedly fantastic news, the TILS share price volatility shows that there is still a high level of uncertainty. While the company holds several patents over its drug delivery methods, none of its medicines are close to finishing their development cycle. And its Covid-19 anti-body treatment has yet to enter phase I trials.

I’ve explored some of the risks of drug development before. But as a reminder, it’s a very challenging feat. The typical drug development cycle takes around 10 years, and 90% of treatments are rejected in phase I.

Tiziana Life Sciences does have five different drugs currently undergoing their phase II trials. And if the results remain positive, these treatments will move into the final stage. However, phase III trials are a multi-year process. So, it could be some time before Tiziana Life Sciences brings any products to market. And that’s assuming regulators and health insurance companies actually approve and agree to cover these treatments, respectively.

The bottom line

Tiziana Life Sciences’ patented drug administration methods do sound very promising to me, especially nasal. Why? Well, without going too deep into the science, a nasal spray triggers an immune response that activates regulatory t-cells. These immune modulators have the unique property of being able to cross the blood-brain barrier, making them perfect for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases like progressive multiple sclerosis. This isn’t possible with traditional intravenous administrative methods.

As a result, I believe that the TILS share price can continue to climb over the long term assuming it succeeds in getting its treatments on the market. However, with no existing commercial products in its portfolio, the company relies entirely on outside funding. Should any of its advanced treatments fail in their phase III trials, this external capital may become quite limited. Needless to say, it creates a significant level of risk. Personally, I think there are too many unknowns at this time. And therefore, I won’t be adding the stock to my portfolio today.

The post Can the Tiziana Life Sciences (TILS) share price continue climbing? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Zaven Boyrazian does not own shares in Tiziana Life Sciences. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

I’m taking a look at two here, both of which released first-half results Friday, and neither of which is in profit yet.

The first is Motif Bio (LSE: MTFB), which is in the business of developing novel antibiotics — and you don’t need me to tell you of the possible profit potential in that field, with our existing range of antibiotics falling one-by-one to the rapid onset of bacterial resistance.

Financially, Motif Bio is still in its net investment phase and has not recorded any profits yet, and there are none on the cards for at least the next two years.

Enough cash

A placement in June 2017 raised $23.7m, leaving the company with net cash at 30 June of $29.7m, so there’s cash there for now at least. But the company did record a net loss for the six months of $29.7m (following on from $14.2m in the same period last year). So cash burn is significant and at that rate it seems there’ll surely need to be further cash calls before profit is reached — investors today need to be aware of that possible dilution.

The good news is that the firm’s current key drug focus, iclaprim, which is intended to treat acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections, made it successfully through its REVIVE-1 Phase 3 clinical trial. The drug appears to be of similar effectiveness as vancomycin, which is today often seen as the antibiotic of last resort — but there are already bugs out there with vancomycin resistance.

Phase 3 success is really big news, and approval from the FDA is what’s needed now — there have already been some positive steps toward that event.

Tackling cancer

My second pick is Tiziana Life Sciences (LSE: TILS), a company researching in the fields of oncology (cancer) and immune diseases.

On the financial front, the company recorded a loss of £3.87m in the half, which left it with £2m in cash at at 30 June (after the raising of £0.57m through the conversion of warrants in March). So again, with losses forecast to widen for the full year and for next year, it looks like Tiziana is also going to need significantly more cash to keep itself going.

The firm’s key prospects aren’t as far developed as Motif’s, with a phase 2 clinical trial protocol of milciclib, a treatment for a kind of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients who do not respond to existing treatments, having been approved in Israel with protocol submissions also made in Italy, Turkey and Greece.

Antibodies

The monoclonal antibody foralumab, aimed at inflammatory diseases such as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), is set for its first study regarding efficacy and safety in patients with NASH and type 2 diabetes.

Tiziana has also acquired an exclusive worldwide license from Novimmune, for another monoclonal antibody with the snappy name of NI-1201.

There’s sizeable risk with both of these, though I do see Motif as the less risky of the two right now. But if this is your kind of investment, I reckon smaller investments in several candidates is a better approach than a big commitment to just one.

The post 2 small-cap growth stocks that could make you a millionaire appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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• Up 446% in 12 months! What’s next for the Ceres Power share price?
• How much is needed in an ISA to unlock £1,220 of passive income a year?
• Forget meal deals! Here’s how £8 a day could be worth £357,000
• Up 132% and surging, how is this FTSE 250 share STILL so cheap?

Alan Oscroft has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Shares in Tiziana Life Sciences (LSE: TISL) have soared by a staggering 348% over the past 12 months. So what does it do?

It’s a small biotechnology company with a market cap of under £180m, but it’s working on something that has enormous potential — novel therapeutics for cancer, with a focus on late-stage metastasis. The firm’s first research goal is to develop a drug to treat metastatic breast cancer, which affects around 12,000 people a year in the UK alone.

Tiziana is still in the net investment phase, having raised £8.3m in the first half of 2015 through a share placing and the issuing of a convertible loan note, and of that there was approximately £7m in cash left at the halfway point in June.

If you invest now you’ll be taking a big gamble on a success coming through the firm’s pipeline, but any early signs of a breakthrough could turn Tiziana into a tasty takeover target.

Live biotherapeutics

My next pick is 4d Pharma (LSE: DDDD), whose shares are up 143% in the past year. Again it’s a pharmaceuticals/biotechnology firm, this time tackling things like Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Crohn’s disease using an approach based on live biotherapeutics (that’s living bacteria, rather than dead chemical stuff).

Promising research results have been behind the share price surge, though it has gone a little off the boil with a 24% drop since May’s peak — but with trading volumes being relatively small we should expect some volatility.

The firm’s first-half update again focused on cash generation, with a placing in February raising £34.3m — and at the halfway stage, the coffers contained £61.5m in cash and equivalents. Nobody knows when profits will arrive, so again you’d be gambling on it happening before the cash runs out.

Silicon recycling

My third for today, which takes technology in a different direction, is Pure Wafer (LSE: PUR). It’s the smallest of the three, with a market cap of just £51m, but its shares have stormed up 213% in 12 months. As its name suggests, the company bills itself as “one of the leading global providers of high quality silicon wafer reclaim services“, and counts a number of the world’s big semiconductor firms among its clientele.

The company suffered a “catastrophic” fire at its Swansea wafer reclaim facility last December, but by May this year the firm had reached a satisfactory agreement with its insurers in the shape of a cash settlement with the Swansea facility not to be rebuilt — it’s since been sold off for redevelopment, along with the firm’s 99 year lease on the land.

Forecasts can’t make much sense at the moment, but the firm says that demand for its wafer reclaim services in the US remain strong, and it’s a market that can only grow.

The post Is It Too Late To Buy 2015 Winners Tiziana Life Sciences PLC (+348%), 4d Pharma PLC (+143%) And Pure Wafer plc (+213%)? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

More reading

• The £15bn defence splurge that could send UK shares soaring in July
• Up 446% in 12 months! What’s next for the Ceres Power share price?
• How much is needed in an ISA to unlock £1,220 of passive income a year?
• Forget meal deals! Here’s how £8 a day could be worth £357,000
• Up 132% and surging, how is this FTSE 250 share STILL so cheap?

Alan Oscroft has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

AFC Energy

AFC Energy, which listed on the AIM Market in 2007, describes itself as “the world’s leading developer of low-cost alkaline fuel cell technology”. The company is focused on large-scale industrial applications.

AFC’s POWER-UP project aims to demonstrate the world’s largest alkaline fuel cell system at an industrial gas plant in Stade, Germany. The project represents the final phase of pre-commercialisation development, and, if successful, will create a platform for global commercial deployment. The schedule is ambitious, but newsflow has been good, and the shares — which had been languishing at under 10p — are currently trading at 39p, valuing the company at £120m.

Further news that the project is on track — including initial power production at Stade in July — could see the shares rise further. The outcome of full testing targeted for December is the biggie. Given the size of the commercial opportunity, a validation of AFC’s technology on an industrial scale could see the valuation of the company rise steeply.

Quindell

Quindell was one of the most heavily-shorted shares in 2014, but anyone buying in at sub-40p lows at the back-end of the year has seen a spectacular increase in 2015. The shares are currently trading at 125p, valuing the company at £545m.

Quindell is set to sell its problematic professional services division to Australian law firm Slater & Gordon (S&G) for an initial cash consideration of £637m. The deal — which is subject only to approval by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) — digs Quindell out of a hole, caused by aggressive accounting and lower than anticipated cash flows. Quindell’s new management expects to be able to pay down debt, retain enough cash for investment in the retained business, and return up to £500m to shareholders.

So, assuming a £500m return, the market is currently valuing what remains of Quindell at just £45m. This consists of a core of telematics-related businesses (for which the company is rumoured to have rejected a £50-£60m offer), some non-core operations that are up for sale, and an entitlement to a share of future settlement fees from a portfolio of hearing-loss claims that passed to S&G.

Quindell is set to publish re-stated accounts by the end of June. If management can demonstrate that “new” Quindell is worth more than the £45m the market is currently valuing it at, the shares could rise accordingly. This could potentially come from one or more of the following: the performance of the telematics businesses (or an offer for them), cash realised from the sale of non-core businesses, and news on hearing-loss fees. Confirmation of the expected FCA approval for the S&G deal and a firm commitment by Quindell’s management to return cash to shareholders at the top end of the proposed “up to £500m” are other potential catalysts for the shares to move higher.

Tiziana Life Sciences

This clinical stage biotech company listed on AIM just over a year ago through a reverse takeover. The company is focused on discovering and developing novel molecules for the treatment of metastatic cancers (cancers that spread from the primary site to other parts of the body). The company’s initial research programme is targeting therapeutics for late-stage breast cancer.

Tiziana has identified an inhibitor candidate and is seeking to discover further molecules with improved profiles. The company is aiming to select a clinical candidate in the fourth quarter of this year, and to be ready to prepare and submit a US New Drug Application in the fourth quarter of 2016. Tiziana has other assets — most recently the acquisition of an exclusive licence for a novel anti-cancer stem cell agent — and the shares have risen strongly in recent months: they currently trade at 135p, valuing the company at £125m.

The valuation of biotech businesses always involves considerable speculation, and I’m not sure Tiziana — which looks like it’s going to burn cash for as far ahead as the eye can see — merits a £125m tag at this stage. Which is not to say the shares can’t go higher in anticipation of positive newsflow. Speculation and momentum can often drive the shares of this type of company in the short term.

The post Can 2015 Winners AFC Energy plc (+280%), Quindell PLC (+212%) And Tiziana Life Sciences PLC (+172%) Continue To Rocket? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

More reading

• The £15bn defence splurge that could send UK shares soaring in July
• Up 446% in 12 months! What’s next for the Ceres Power share price?
• How much is needed in an ISA to unlock £1,220 of passive income a year?
• Forget meal deals! Here’s how £8 a day could be worth £357,000
• Up 132% and surging, how is this FTSE 250 share STILL so cheap?

G A Chester has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.