UPDATE: Stifel Nicolaus Initiates AVEO Pharmaceuticals at Sell; Tivozanib Decision Likely Negative

Stifel NIcolaus initiated coverage on AVEO Pharmaceuticals

with a Sell rating. Stifel NIcolaus commented, "We forecast a negative regulatory decision for Tivozanib, Aveo's lead clinical candidate, leading to a significant decline in the company's valuation. While we view Tivozanib as an active therapy for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with differentiated characteristics versus currently approved therapies, we believe regulators will not approve Tivozanib based on the unexpected overall survival discrepancy in the pivotal TIVO-1 trial, even though the trial met the primary endpoint of improving progression free survival (PFS)." AVEO Pharmaceuticals closed at $6.83 on Tuesday.