After showing a strong upward move at the open, biotechnology stocks continue to see notable strength in late morning trading on Wednesday. Sequenom (SQNM), Millipore (MIL) and OSI Pharmaceuticals (OSIP) are helping to lead the sector higher.
The NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index is near its best level of the day, up by 1.6 percent. With the gain, the index is on pace to set a fresh all-time closing high.
Sequenom is turning in one of the sector's best performances, with the stock surging up by 6.5 percent. The advance has lifted shares to their best intraday level in over five months.
Millipore is also on the rise, posting a gain of 4.2 percent and moving higher for a ninth straight session. The gain by Millipore comes after the company confirmed that it is evaluating strategic alternatives, including a possible merger or sale of the company.
Millipore said that it has not set definitive timetable for completion of its evaluation and noted that there can be no assurances that the process will result in any transaction.
Further, OSI Pharmaceuticals is up by 2.8 percent after reaching its best intraday price in over eleven months. The buying interest comes after the firm reported fourth-quarter revenues of $124.0 million, beating forecasts for revenues of $119.76 million.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX), Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR), Myriad Genetics (MYGN) and Genzyme (GENZ) are also on the rise, among a number of others in the sector, while Celera (CRA) is bucking the uptrend, posting a modest loss.
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