Why Shares of Sangamo Biosciences Fell Today

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Sangamo Biosciences fell as much as 12% today after providing a clinical update at the annual meeting of the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy. The stock has since recovered slightly as investors have had a chance to digest the news.

So what: Sangamo provided several clinical updates at the meeting related to the trials that are currently being run using Sangamo's drug SB-728-T. The drug is currently being studied as a potential treatment against a variety of diseases such as HIV/AIDS, sickle-cell disease, and cancer.

This press release follows yesterday's update in which Sangamo and its partner Biogen Idecannounced a decision to consolidate development paths for its zinc finger nuclease (ZFN)-mediated genome editing programs targeting beta-thalassemia and sickle cell disease. This consolidation, which Sangamo claims will lead to greater efficiency, will result in a delay of its Phase 1 clinical trial start date, which is now slated to begin in 2016.

Now what: As Sangamo has yet to turn a profit, it remains a higher-risk stock, and analysts are predicting that revenue is going to fall 10% in 2016. Still, with $196 million in cash and equivalents on the balance sheet, Sangamo appears to have ample near-term liquidity to meet its capital needs. Sangamo's drug is certainly interesting, but the company remains high-risk, and I'm personally going to stay away until Sangamo proves that it can generate a profit.

The article Why Shares of Sangamo Biosciences Fell Today originally appeared on Fool.com.

Brian Feroldi has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.