Steven Delco
For over 40 years, Steven Delco has identified promising healthcare and biotech companies before they gain widespread recognition.
His career includes scientific research, company building, equity research, hedge-fund management, entrepreneurship, and advisory services. He consistently finds standout science and companies early, helping investors realize value ahead of the consensus.
Steven Delco’s original biotechnology research and investment work identified and followed companies including Gilead Sciences (GILD), Novo Nordisk (NVO), ISIS Pharmaceuticals/Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Genentech (GENE), Amgen (AMGN), Chiron (CHIR) and Immunex (IMNX), among many others. Several of these companies went on to become major forces in the global healthcare and biotechnology industry.
He blends scientific expertise with investment analysis to assess what companies can become, not just what they are today.
“The greatest opportunities in biotechnology are often found before the market fully understands what a company, platform, technology or scientific discovery could ultimately become.”
A Rare Combination of Scientific and Investment Experience
Steven Delco began his career in science and education, including research at the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research, teaching biology and chemistry, and serving as an instructor of biochemistry at Hunter College.
He founded Delco Scientific Resources, a consulting firm at the intersection of scientific innovation and emerging healthcare technologies.
He then moved into leadership, investment research, and portfolio management.
At Miller Tabak Hirsch + Co., Steven served as Senior Biotechnology Securities Analyst and Vice President and was ranked the #1 healthcare analyst by the Carson Group.
At Fortis Bank, he served as Managing Director and Senior Biotechnology Analyst, where he built and managed a five-person research team.
At Natexis Bleichroeder and Lombard Odier, he served as Senior Vice President and Healthcare Analyst and hired and managed a healthcare research team.
At Robeco Investment Management, Steven became Portfolio Manager of the Weiss, Peck & Greer Biotechnology Portfolio within a $300 million equity long/short hedge fund, conducting fundamental research throughout pharmaceuticals, specialty pharmaceuticals, medical devices and biotechnology and executing both long and short healthcare investments.
DELCO ADVISORS
Since 2008, Steven Delco has served as CEO of Delco Advisors, LLC, providing healthcare and international strategic advisory services.
He also serves as a Healthcare Portfolio Advisor to healthcare and biotechnology long/short funds in the United States and Europe, continuing his work evaluating emerging healthcare companies, technologies and investment opportunities.
His approach is based on decades of experience recognizing that some of the most significant healthcare investment opportunities begin as relatively small companies whose scientific and commercial potential has not yet been fully appreciated.
Building Biotechnology Companies
Steven’s experience extends beyond analyzing companies. He has also helped build and finance emerging biotechnology businesses.
He was a Co-Founder of BioRelix, Inc., a New Haven biotechnology company based on antibiotic research originating from Dr. Ron Breaker’s laboratory at Yale University. BioRelix raised approximately $25 million in initial capital in 2007.
He also founded RF Pharmaceuticals in Amsterdam, focused on rainforest-derived drug development in cancer.
His commitment to healthcare innovation extends into oncology and patient advocacy. Steven served as a Director of Gateway Research for Cancer, supporting innovative Phase I/II cancer trials, and founded SurviveCancerInc.org, a nonprofit cancer advocacy organization.
He has also served as acting CEO of Calabro Cheese Corporation and has written about biotechnology investing for Forbes Magazine.
The Steven Delco Approach
Steven’s approach is shaped by decades of questioning beyond conventional analysis:
- What is the science really worth?
- What could this technology become?
- Is the market underestimating the opportunity?
- Does the company have the people and resources to turn scientific innovation into a major business?
- What does the future healthcare market look like—not just today’s market?
This multidisciplinary perspective allows Steven to evaluate opportunities from the standpoint of a scientist, investor, entrepreneur, operator and strategic advisor.
Recognizing Value Before It Becomes Obvious
Throughout his career, Steven Delco has sought out companies when their ultimate potential was still being debated—or not yet recognized.
His research and investment work included companies such as Gilead Sciences, Novo Nordisk, ISIS/Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Genentech, Amgen, Chiron and Immunex, companies that would go on to become important names in the healthcare and biotechnology industry.
The common thread was not simply identifying companies that eventually succeeded. It was recognizing the underlying scientific, technological and commercial potential early enough to matter.
That ability to look beyond current valuations, current revenues and prevailing market opinion remains at the center of Steven’s work today.
