PennyMac Loan Services Has Fast Become the Largest Employer in Moorpark

Headquartered in Moorpark, PennyMac is a family of companies that provides a full range of mortgage services, which include a registered investment advisor that manages a REIT and other private vehicles that invest in troubled mortgages and a best-in-class loan servicing operation that works with borrowers to stay in their homes. PennyMac has designed a new, more comprehensive business model that addresses the problems in the mortgage industry and provides a more sustainable business for the future that aligns the interests of consumers, investors and the public.

The company was established in January 2008 and now services more than $2 billion in residential loans. In addition, during 2009 PennyMac raised over $647 million in private investment funds and $314 million in its public offering and its loan servicing portfolio has grown to over 13,000 loans and $2.6 billion.

PennyMac is a national lender with over 1,000 employees, making it the largest employer in Moorpark! And they continue to hire...check out their jobs listings at www.pennymacusa.com/careers.php.

If you have tried unsuccessfully to refinance in the last year or so, programs and rates have changed enough, along with rising home values for many in the Conejo Valley, that you may be able to reduce your rate or monthly payment this time.

Call PennyMac today at 888-457-0218 or visit them website at THIS LINK to learn more about PennyMac and your options for refinancing and lowering your monthly mortgage payments.

Calabasas Based Kythera Biopharmaceuticals Developing Double Chin Reduction Drug

For anyone driving the 101 freeway through Calabasas, it's hard to miss the blue Kythera sign south of the freeway on Agoura Road.

Kythera Biopharmaceuticals was founded in 2005, with a primary focus of commercializing its development-stage product, ATX-101. Currently in late stage Phase III clinical trials in the U.S., ATX-101 is a synthetically-derived form of sodium deoxycholate, a compound that promotes the breakdown of dietary fat.

ATX-101 is being tested for the reduction of submental fat. "Submental" is the area below the chin. Yes, Kythera is developing an injectable product aimed towards reducing double chins! There is no such product in existence today; thus, Kythera aims to be the first FDA-approved drug for this purpose.

ATX-101 is an injectable that, after 4 to 6 treatments, has provided statistically significant reductions in submental fat, with over 90% of patients in a long-term clinical follow-up study maintaining positive aesthetic results after two years!

Of course, the product will not be available to the U.S. general public until Kythera completes Ph III clinical trials in mid-2013 and subsequently files for FDA approval. While Kythera has retained full rights to commercialize ATX-101 in the U.S. and Canada, it has partnered with Bayer to commercialize the product throughout the rest of the world. After positive Ph III clinical study results in Europe last year, Kythera expects that Bayer will file for marketing approval in the European Union sometime this year.

The cost of developing a drug, let alone a "first-in-class" drug, is substantial. Kythera raised $81 million in its IPO last October after raising a total of $108 million in four rounds of venture capital. But if ATX-101 is approved, Kythera believes the drug has the potential to reach long-term annual sales of over $500 million. Given Allergan's Botox sales are well over $1.5 billion per year, with roughly half used for aesthetic purposes, Kythera's estimates would seem to be achievable.

Kythera stock is traded under the symbol KYTH. The stock went public at $16 and currently has a price of $29.15, giving Kythera a market valuation of over half a billion dollars! Congratulations to the Kythera management team for what they've done over the last seven years and what a truly amazing success story this will be if this product reaches the market.

And for those fighting losing battles with dreaded submental fat, you may have a non-surgical alternative soon thanks to Kythera.

Learn more about Kythera at www.kytherabiopharma.com.