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Raymond James launched its coverage of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS), AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV), and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALNY) with buy-equivalent ratings late Thursday.
Issuing a Strong Buy and a $63 per share target on Ionis (IONS), analyst Gary Nachman highlighted the biotech’s RNA medicine eplontersen, which is currently under FDA review for polyneuropathy caused by hereditary TTR amyloidosis (ATTR-PN).
Ahead of a target action date of December 22, the analyst sees a high likelihood for the FDA to approve the AstraZeneca (AZN)-partnered drug.
Nachman also touts the potential of eplontersen in ATTR cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM). A Phase 3 trial for the candidate is currently underway for ATTR-CM, with data expected in H1 2025.
On AbbVie (ABBV), Raymond James argues that the company has managed the Humira patent cliff in the U.S., exceeding initial expectations while expanding its newer immunology products, Skyrizi and Rinvoq, across multiple indications.
Starting AbbVie (ABBV) with an Outperform rating and a $177 per share target, Nachman opines that Skyrizi and Rinvoq can potentially surpass peak Humira sales and thwart future biosimilar competition.
Meanwhile, Alnylam (ALNY) draws an Outperform rating and a $208 per share target from Nachman, who cites favorable views from an expert regarding the company’s RNAi therapeutic patisiran, which is currently under FDA review for ATTR-CM.
“Recent AdComm for Onpattro in ATTR-CM was mixed and expectations have been lowered for that approval on the 10/8/23 PDUFA,” Nachman wrote.
However, he points to a favorable risk-reward setup ahead of a data readout for another RNAi therapeutic called vutrisiran targeted at ATTR-CM in ALNY’s HELIOS-B Phase 3 trial. That trial is expected to generate data in H1 2024.
Concurrently, Raymond James issued a Market Perform rating on Jazz Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:JAZZ), arguing that competition has clouded the outlook for the company’s oxybate franchise, led by key sleep therapies Xywav and Xyrem.
“However, oxybate competition has been heating up, which still creates a level of uncertainty with the longer-term durability of that key franchise,” Nachman wrote.
In May, the FDA granted full approval for Avadel Pharmaceuticals’ (AVDL) oxybate product Lumryz as a treatment for adults with the sleeping disorder narcolepsy.
