Biogen shares have much more potential upside for buyers because of constructive new knowledge across the firm’s early Alzheimer’s drug, Goldman Sachs stated Wednesday. The agency upgraded Biogen to a purchase from impartial and elevated its worth goal on shares to $370, about 35% from the place they closed on Tuesday. The improve adopted the corporate’s earnings name, which had a giant concentrate on the drug, lecanemab, an anti-amyloid antibody that’s in section 3 trials. Goldman additionally raised its income estimates for the drug to $14 billion in 2035, in contrast with prior estimates of $2 billion. “The corporate is now poised to deal with the early Alzheimer’s illness market in 2023+ following the latest topline lecanemab Ph3 (CLARITY-AD) knowledge,” Goldman analyst Salveen Richter stated in a notice. “Whereas buyers are usually cautious into the complete presentation at CTAD,” or the Scientific Trials on Alzheimer’s Illness congress on Nov. 29, “our discussions with main neurologists and administration lead us to consider that the outcomes are clinically significant (given the profit throughout a number of endpoints, constructive development over time, and security profile), however competitor property.” The agency expects section 3 knowledge for Roche’s gantenerumab on the occasion on Nov. 29 and Eli Lilly’s donanameb by mid-2023. With out lecanemab, discounted money move worth is $190/share, Richter stated. Biogen associate Eisai plans to submit for full approval within the U.S., European Union and Japan within the first quarter of subsequent yr and Goldman anticipates will probably be profitable. “With BIIB shares now buying and selling at ~$270 publish the topline CLARITY-AD knowledge, there’s roughly ~$80/share mirrored within the inventory for Alzhiemer’s illness,” Richter stated. “This $80/share for Alzhiemer’s corresponds to ~$12 billion in BIIB market cap or ~$7 billion in peak WW lecanemab gross sales (primarily based on a 3.5x a number of and the 50-50 revenue cut up with Eisai).”
