It’s not every day that you see a company enter an intraday trading halt. Especially after starting the day with a massive announcement to send your share price 76.92% higher!
That is exactly what Opyl Ltd [ASX:OPL] has done though.
A diminutive $7 million market cap stock that has made a mark on the ASX today.
With today’s news though, Opyl could be well on its way too much bigger aspirations. Particularly if the good news keeps on coming…
AI solutions to our pandemic problem
The big catalyst behind Opyl’s meteoric rise today is its AI software.
The company has developed a platform that uses predictive probability to evaluate COVID-19 drugs, vaccines, medical devices and more. Proving quite accurate at forecasting whether a treatment will succeed or fail in clinical trials.
It is easy to see why this kind of software would be desirable.
Providing companies with a means to evaluate, refine and deliver better products with a higher likelihood to pass their trials. Products that could hopefully help us find a cure not only for COVID, but many other diseases in the future as well.
As Opyl state:
‘Knowing the predicted probability score, having an opportunity before the trial commences to improve upon the trial design, will save hundreds of millions of dollars.’
Or as Opyl’s CEO, Michelle Gallaher, put it:
‘Our approach is to use AI to not just predict the outcome, but to demonstrate that changing specific clinical trials variables can improve the probability of success’.
Given the fact that this software has so far proved to be ‘more accurate than previously published models’, that seems like a real possibility. Offering up a means for biotech or pharmaceutical firms to ensure they don’t waste valuable time and money.
For this tiny stock, that is an extremely valuable proposition.
Which is precisely why the OPL share price went bonkers this morning. That is, before it went into a trading halt at around 10:30. Just a half hour after market open.
More good news to come?
Now, the reason behind this odd trading halt is still unclear.
All we know is that Opyl is slated to make another announcement to the market. News that should be made public some time before 7 September (Monday).
Whether it will be positive or negative remains to be seen. But, on the back of today’s announcement it is bound to grab the markets attention.
For shareholders that is a result worth keeping an eye on. Because with any luck, Opyl may have just made its breakthrough.
We’ll have to wait and see what comes next.
And while investors may not be able to get their hands on Opyl stock at the moment, don’t fret. There are plenty of other promising small-caps to be found.
Take our report on ‘high-value small-caps’ for example. It provides an analysis of four of the most promising small-cap investments on the ASX right now.
Check it out for yourself, in full, right here.
Regards,
Ryan Clarkson-Ledward,
For Money Morning
