It’s been a rough couple of weeks for the biotechnology sector. Standard & Poor’s Equity Research lowered its opinion of the industry last Tuesday to “neutral” from “positive,” citing recent drug-filing delays, safety concerns and mixed fourth-quarter results. “While we find a number of names attractive, we think there are many issues that are not,” the research firm said. “We have concerns over options expensing in second half of 2005, and see a significant negative impact for smaller issues.” The American Stock Exchange Pharmaceutical Index (DRG) reversed small gains last week with a decline of 1.13%, while Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (NBI) continued its descent into the abyss, falling 2.56%. Despite that, bargain hunters were stalking the biotech sector.
