Plant-based prescription medicine developer Jaguar Health (NASDAQ:JAGX) wasn’t a common topic of conversation prior to December 2020. However, breathtaking price moves have recently put JAGX stock in the limelight, practically forcing healthcare sector traders to take notice.
Jaguar Health is a California-based biopharmaceutical company that specializes in treating gastrointestinal conditions.
Yet, these are not your run-of-the-mill medical treatment options. The company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Napo Pharmaceuticals, develops and commercializes treatments based on rainforest-area plants.
Is this a niche market worth pursuing? A glance at the price action of JAGX stock should answer that question. Just suffice it to say that the company and the stock are moving quickly — and making the short sellers run for the hills.
JAGX Stock at a Glance
On the afternoon of Jan. 8, JAGX stock was up more than 40% and approaching the $4 area. The trading volume for the day was above 250 million shares, more than five times the usual daily volume for this stock.
And yet, that day was just another segment in the astounding run-up of JAGX stock. For instance, the share price rose more than 40% on Jan. 5, also with heavy trading volume.
There was no news of significance on either of those days. Rather, it appears to have been a continuation of the powerful price move that started in late November, when JAGX stock cost 20 cents.
Much of the price surge occurred during the first week of the new year, with JAGX stock vaulting from $1 to $4 in a matter of days. Certainly, the short sellers covering their positions may have given JAGX an additional boost.
Interestingly, Jaguar Health was granted an extension by the Nasdaq Exchange in early December to get its stock back above $1 for more than 10 consecutive trading days, in order to regain compliance with the exchange’s listing rules. Needless to say, JAGX stock is fully compliant now.
The Covid Connection
Jaguar Health’s (and more precisely, Napo Pharmaceuticals’) primary product is called Mytesi. The generic name for the drug is crofelemer.
According to the company, Mytesi has already been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the symptomatic relief of noninfectious diarrhea in adults with HIV/AIDS on who are on anti-retro-viral therapy.
Moreover, Mytesi/crofelemer is the only oral plant-based prescription medicine that’s currently approved under FDA Botanical Guidance. So, there’s a major blue-sky opportunity here with Mytesi.
Napo Pharmaceuticals envisions a Covid-19 connection for Mytesi as the drug could potentially work as an anti-diarrheal for patients with long-term Covid-19 symptoms.
Not to suggest that every biotech stock has to have a connection to Covid-19, but if Mytesi can provide relief for some patients who suffer from Covid-19, that’s certainly a benefit.
Noting the SPAC Angle
Plant-based medicine is still a new and exciting idea that’s coming to fruition with innovators like Napo Pharmaceuticals.
In 2020 and into 2021, innovative companies have often considered using special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) to go public. If Napo Pharmaceuticals gets to a major stock exchange through a SPAC, that could be big news for the plant-based medicine market.
It could also be game-changing for investors. Currently, Napo Pharmaceuticals is working to expand into Europe under the name Napo EU.
Furthermore, there’s been talk of a potential merger of Napo EU with a SPAC called the European Post Pandemic Recovery Equity.
How serious is the company about this? Jaguar has already completed a road show with Swiss Growth Forum, a sponsor of the SPAC. So, this sounds quite serious.
It’s not hard to imagine that a finalized SPAC deal would have a positive impact on JAGX stock. After all, we’ve seen the impressive performance of numerous SPAC stocks in 2020.
The Takeaway
JAGX stock has a number of connections, current and potential, to various niches. These include plant-based medicine, Covid-19 and SPAC’s.
With these associations in mind, it’s possible that JAGX stock could continue its amazing price run. At the very least, we can say that this is no time to fight the trend and bet against JAGX.
On the date of publication, neither Louis Navellier nor the InvestorPlace Research Staff member primarily responsible for this article held (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
