Re: Turns Out Biotech Billionaire Owner of L.A. Times Has a Lot More to Worry About Than His Collapsing Paper

[Jan 6 Was A Peaceful Lawful Assembly]

In article <2a9faaa5-f826-4828...@googlegroups.com>

> Another tale of leftist vapor money blowing in the wind.

As the old saying goes, when it rains, it pours. The adage couldn't
be more applicable to biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, owner
of the Los Angeles Times. With his paper losing an estimated $30
million per year and seemingly near imminent collapse, Soon-Shiong
is about to face a far costlier issue.

The labor issues crushing the L.A. Times pale in comparison to the
decline in value of Soon-Shiong's biotech company ImmunityBio
(IBRX). Since the company's stock began trading publicly on March
10, 2021, it has fallen an incredible 91 percent.

Putting the disaster in perspective makes it look even worse. $23.5
billion in IBRX market value — based on the company's current number
of shares outstanding — has vanished.


It gets worse.

While ImmunityBio isn't in the S&P 500 or other major indices, it is
held by some ETF (exchange-traded funds) providers, including major
players like BlackRock and Vanguard.

Here's more:

All told, Vanguard Group owns 14.7 million shares, or 2.2%, of the
company. The value of this stake is down $52.8 million since it
started trading in March 2021. And BlackRock owns 10.8 million
shares, or 1.6%. That means Vanguard and BlackRock are down $515.1
million and $379.5 million since March 2021.

So what's the deal with Patrick Soon-Shiong? Is he one of those
people for whom everything eventually turns to crap, terribly
unlucky, or someone in between? Dunno — but I do know this:

As a former CFP (Certified Financial Planner), I know from
experience that any investment that can make you rich in a hurry can
also make you poor in a hurry.

As I researched ImmunityBio in preparation for writing this article,
here's a bit of what I found out:

ImmunityBio Inc. is a late-clinical-stage immunotherapy company
developing next-generation therapies that drive immunogenic
mechanisms for defeating cancers and infectious diseases. The
company's immunotherapy platform activates both the innate (natural
killer cell and macrophage) and adaptive (T cell) immune systems to
create long-term immunological memory.


The company was "hit with a complete response letter (a snub) from
the FDA for its bladder cancer prospect" in May 2023, causing its
common stock to fall more than 50 percent in overnight trading.

The Bottom Line
As a CFP, I regularly advised my clients not to put all their eggs
in one basket. That rationale applies to companies, big and small —
or should — as well. Again, I know nothing about late-clinical-stage
immunotherapy, but I do know quite a lot about the fundamentals of
diversification and minimizing investment risk.

As for Patrick Soon-Shiong's views on investing — including the
capital of other investors — I have no idea what the guy thinks. But
I do know he has a knack for losing money on more than one major
investment.

Special thanks to Daniel Guss for bringing the Investor's Business
Daily piece to our attention!

https://redstate.com/mike_miller/2024/01/24/turns-out-biotech-
billionaire-owner-of-the-la-times-has-a-lot-more-problems-than-his-
collapsing-paper-n2169149