NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Shares of Sequenom climbed 57 percent during the month of November on a string of favorable news for the firm.
Shares of the San Diego-based molecular diagnostics developer topped gainers for the month in the GenomeWeb Daily News Index.
Early in the month Sequenom reported a 68 percent increase in third-quarter revenues, driven by sales of its MaterniT21 Plus test. Chairman and CEO Harry Hixson noted that the firm's lab has reached a 90,000 annualized test volume run rate, double the number of tests it expected in early May.
Later in the month Sequenom, and other makers of non-invasive prenatal tests using cell-free fetal DNA, received a boost when the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists issued an opinion that such tests can be offered to patients at increased risk of aneuploidy.
The firm also settled patent litigation with ArcticDx during the month and its stock was upgraded to a Buy rating by investment bank Jefferies.
In addition to Sequenom, shares of Pacific Biosciences (+29 percent) and Bruker (+21 percent) also had a strong month.
Only six of the 30 stocks in the GWDN Index lost ground in November, led by CombiMatrix, which dropped 36 percent. The firm's shares fell sharply after it reported a 5 percent increase in third-quarter revenues.
Overall, the GWDN Index was up nearly 4 percent in November, beating the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which fell about half a percent, and the Nasdaq, which gained 1 percent. The Nasdaq Biotech Index jumped 5 percent sequentially.