For investors looking for a stock that has a real shot of doubling in value during 2020, they should consider purchase of Guardant Health Inc. (GH), notes growth and income expert Bryan Perry, editor of Cash Machine.
The company is a leader in the high-growth non-invasive cancer technology space. Liquid biopsy in the form of precision blood testing and advanced analytics is quickly replacing tissue biopsy procedures and is proving transformational in cancer diagnostics.
The company’s flagship products, Guardant360 liquid biopsy and GuardantOMNI tests are seeing rapidly expanding application for use across a vast majority of advanced solid tumors.
It is estimated that as many as 30% of advanced cancer patients are not biopsiable for tissue testing, and therefore key biomarkers for advanced treatment decisions can take two to three times as long to determine using conventional methods.
The FDA recently granted Guardant expanded coverage of Guardant360 to address multiple cancers such as breast, colorectal, gastric, uterine, lung, thyroid and melanoma. Medicare quickly followed suit, granting expanded policy coverage by several big private insurers including Cigna and multiple Blue-Cross Blue-Shield plans.
2019 proved to be a phenomenal year for Guardant Health. In its most current third quarter set of results, earnings beat by $0.23 per share and revenue of $60.8 million was up +180% Y/Y and $15.4M higher than forecast.
The company reported an 89% increase in tests to clinical customers and an 111% increase in tests to biapharma customers. To top of the quarter, the company raised 2019 revenue guidance to $207-$220 from $180M-$190M.
SoftBank’s Vision Fund was an early and big investor in Guardant Health and though it sold 4.9 million shares to shore up its finances after the WeWork debacle, it remains the largest holder with more than 20 million shares.
The stock traded to a high of $110.30 in August and before the lockup period expired and the large sales by SoftBank, but has since found buyers stepping in at $70 level. At its current price of $80, I think the stock can trade to $160 in the year ahead. It’s that good of a story — a true game changer.
