Cell therapy portfolio outperforms major indices year-to-date

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On August 10 we created a model portfolio in Google Finance of 29 public companies in the cell therapy sector then we compared how that portfolio was doing against the major indices year-to-date (Since 1 January 2012).  See that post here.  Bottom line: even though we are still in a relatively bullish market, the CT portfolio was doing better.  Significantly better.

So how is the sector portfolio doing now that we've been through three quarters?

In case you can't read the image above, the blue line represents the cell therapy portfolio and here are the stats on performance since 1 January 2012:

• Cell Therapy Portfolio:  +63.17%
• Dow Jones:  +11.17%
• S+P 500:  +15.76%
• Nasdaq:  +19.46%

The only change I've made to the portfolio of 29 companies listed in our August 10 post is to add Thermogenesis (KOOL).  Today its stock is at .968 up from .7 at the beginning of the year.

You do or should know, I'm no financial analyst.  I'm not entirely sure what assumptions are behind this 'model portfolio' or precisely what one should take from this snapshot but what is clear to me is that at least from one perspective the sector is treating investors fairly well.

I certainly welcome comments from more sophisticated investors or analysts.  In fact, if anyone with that kind of experience or expertise wants to write a guest post on this blog providing a more sophisticated commentary on what this all means, I would very much welcome the contribution.

In the meantime, I hope this helps.

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Post-publication addition:

Carter Gould, Associate Biotech Analyst at Dawson James Securities emailed me to point out that the cell therapy portfolio is simply riding the bull wave of biotech in general and and the more relevant comparison index is the broader biotech (BTK) index which is up 45% YTD.  Here is a YahooFinance snapshot of the BTK performance vs the three major indices.

Is the cell therapy sector outperforming the major indices?

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So here's what I did today.  I built a portfolio of public companies focused exclusively or predominately in the cell therapy space.  I excluded any companies that are in the sector but their products/services constitute less than a significant majority of their revenue and/or expenses.  The portfolio sits at 29 companies.  Here's the list:

Here's how the portfolio performs against the Dow Jones, Standard and Poor's, and NASDAQ indices so far this year.

When looking at the period 1 January 2012 to 10 August 2012, the cell therapy portfolio is up 42%, Dow Jones up 8%, Standard and Poor's up 12% and NASDAQ up 16%.

In the context of how much we hear about how harsh this sector is or has been on investors, I found today's analysis interesting and, honestly, pleasantly surprising.

This snapshot is useful but has its limitations. I'm relying on Google Finance for accuracy of the information provided.  Do your own due diligence. Invest accordingly.  I hope this helps.

--Lee

This snapshot has been brought to you by Cell Therapy Group: all cell therapy, all the time! :)