Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. INO incurred a loss of 8 cents in the second quarter of 2018, narrower than both the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 35 cents and the year-ago loss of 13 cents.Inovio generated revenues of $24.4 million in the second quarter, comprehensively beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.1 million. This upside was owing to an up-front payment of $23 million received from ApolloBio Corp. However, this increase was partially offset by $12.8 million due to some accounting adjustments and a decrease in grant funding recognized from its DARPA Ebola grant.Shares of Inovio inched up 1.5% following its earnings release. Year to date, the stock has outperformed the industry with a loss of 2.7%, narrower than the industry’s decline of 4.8%.Research and development expenses improved 5.8% to $22.5 million owing to accounting adjustment mentioned above and lower expenses related to the DARPA Ebola grant.General and administrative expenses rose 16.1% to $7.2 million in the reported quarter.Pipeline and Other UpdatesVGX-3100, an HPV immunotherapy is currently being evaluated in a phase III study for the treatment of cervical dysplasia, caused by human papillomavirus (HPV). VGX-3100 is the most advanced candidate in the company’s pipeline.Inovio is conducting a pivotal phase III REVEAL program to evaluate the safety and efficacy of VGX-3100 for treating cervical dysplasia caused by HPV. Another phase II study is examining the efficacy of VGX-3100 on women with HPV-related vulvar neoplasia.During the quarter under review, Inovio initiated a phase II trial to evaluate the efficacy of VGX-3100 on adult men and women with HPV-related anal dysplasia. This will be the third indication that VGX-3100 is being evaluated for. Earlier this week, Inovio announced that it has inked a partnership deal with AIDS Malignancy Consortium to fund VGX-3100’s phase II study for high-grade anal dysplasia in HIV-positive adult patients.Apart from VGX-3100, Inovio has several candidates in its pipeline under early-to-mid-stage development.INO-4700 is being co-developed by Inovio and GeneOne Life Science Inc for MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome). In collaboration with GeneOne Life Science, Inovio plans to begin a phase I/II analysis during the third quarter of 2018.In June, Inovio began a phase I/II trial to evaluate the safety, immunogenicity and preliminary efficacy of INO-5401 combined with Regeneron’s REGN cemiplimab on participants with newly-diagnosed glioblastoma. Inovio announced that it has dosed the first patient enrolled in its study.Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. QuoteZacks Rank & Stock to ConsiderInovio currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Two better-ranked stocks in the healthcare sector are Gilead Sciences, Inc. GILD and Illumina, Inc. ILMN, both sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.Gilead Sciences’ earnings estimates have been moved 7.7% north for 2018 and 2.2% for 2019 over the past 60 days. The stock has gained 9.4% year to date.Illumina’s earnings estimates have been revised 10.9% upward for 2018 and 8% for 2019 over the past 60 days. The stock has soared 54.3% so far this year.More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone!It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 27 billion devices in just 3 years, creating a $1.7 trillion market.Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 6 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2020.Click here for the 6 trades >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Illumina, Inc. (ILMN): Free Stock Analysis Report Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (REGN): Free Stock Analysis Report Gilead Sciences, Inc. (GILD): Free Stock Analysis Report Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (INO): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research