Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) shares increased 2.74% to $17.60 in pre-market trading after the company posted second quarter 2015 earnings. The bank posted revenue of $22.34 billion and $0.45 per diluted share, beating the analyst estimate of $21.30 billion in revenue and $0.36 per diluted share. Management attributed the strong earnings to “solid core loan growth, higher mortgage originations and the lowest expenses since 2008,†assuring investors that the woes and legal battles from the 2008 financial crisis have passed. Costs decreased 25% year-over-year to $13.8 billion. According to analysts polled by TipRanks in the last 3 months, 3 analysts are bullish on BAC, 1 is neutral, and 1 is bearish. As of this writing, the average 12-month price target is $19.63, marking a 15% potential upside from where the stock is currently trading.
Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ:CELG) shot up 5.74% in pre-market trading to $129.90 following an announcement that the biopharmaceutical company will be acquiring Receptos, another leader in the field. Celgene will pay $232 per share in cash for the acquisition, totaling $7.2 billion. Shares of Receptos last closed at $197.11. The two companies will benefit from a combined Inflammation and Immunology portfolio, adding Ozanimod to Celgene’s sales. The combined companies expects sales from Ozanimod to reach $4 billion to $6 billion at peak sales. Looking forward, Celgene affirmed 2015 total net product sales between $9 billion and $9.5 billion and raised adjusted diluted EPS estimates from $4.60 to $4.75 up to $4.75 to $4.85. According to the 13 analysts polled by TipRanks in the past 3 months, 11 are bullish on Celgene and 2 are neutral. As of this writing, the average 12-month price target on the stock is $144.92, marking an 18% potential upside from where the stock is currently trading.
ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS) shares are up more than 7% in pre-market trading to $60.19 after the biopharmaceutical company announced it had earned $2.15 million milestone payment from Biogen for ISIS-SMN aimed to treat children with  spinal muscular atrophy. The illness occurs as a result of a gene mutation that is responsible for producing a critical protein, and ISIS-SMN aims to increase the production of this protein. This payment totals more than $120 million generated by Biogen in connection to the pipeline drug. Based on the 5 analysts polled by TipRanks in the last 3 months, 3 are bullish on the pharmaceutical company and 2 are neutral. On average, the 12-month price target for the stock is $80, marking a 42% potential upside from where the stock is currently trading.
