Going From Plant to Pharma

While the cannabis cultivation stocks are in the early stages of recovering from their summer swoon, the companies that process the raw crop into laboratory-grade pharmaceuticals keep moving through the clinical process.

Cara Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:CARA) is seriously underrated right now, with a few niche therapies roughly a year from a formal regulatory review and a cannabis-derived pain drug currently at the pivotal trial stage. The potential is huge.

This molecule has the kind of profile that could replace opioids and their side effects (including addiction) once and for all. The medical logic is obvious in hindsight as the plant was traditionally used to relieve pain. Now, its derivatives can do the job more scientifically.

Of course, self-medicating with the raw plant is imprecise. With all these “pharmaceutical cannabis” companies, the goal is to find the right molecule inside the plant and then refine it so that it pinpoints a specific process within the body.

CARA’s drug is working to block pain receptors and shut down the flow of uncomfortable signals to the brain. Whoever can do that has a blockbuster on their hands.

My Turbo Trader subscribers have already made money here years ahead of the final Food & Drug Administration decision. They’re approaching the scoring zone once again.

Hilary Kramer

Hilary Kramer is an investment analyst and portfolio manager with 30 years of experience on Wall Street. The Financial Times describes Ms. Kramer as “A one-woman financial investment powerhouse” and The Economist distinguishes her as “one of the best-known investors in America”. Ms. Kramer is often quoted in publications such as the Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Bloomberg, and Reuters. She is a frequent guest commentator on CNBC, CBS, Fox News and Bloomberg, providing investment insight and economic analysis. Ms. Kramer was an analyst and investment banker at Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers. Ms. Kramer founded and ran a long-short hedge fund and has been chief investment officer overseeing debt and equity portfolios. Since 2010, Ms. Kramer’s financial publications have provided stock analysis and investment advice to her subscribers. Her products include GameChangers, Value Authority, High Octane Trader, Triple-Digit Trader, 2-Day Trader, IPO Edge and Inner Circle. Ms. Kramer, a Certified Fraud Examiner, has also testified as an expert in investment suitability, risk management, compliance, executive compensation, and corporate governance. Ms. Kramer received her MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and her BA with honors from Wellesley College. Ms. Kramer has provided testimony regarding investment policy to the U.S. Senate and is a frequent speaker on the markets, portfolio management and securities fraud and compliance. Ms. Kramer is also the author of “Ahead of the Curve” (Simon & Schuster 2007) and “The Little Book of Big Profits from Small Stocks” (Wiley 2012).