UPDATE: Aegis Capital Corp. Initiates Coverage on Galena Biopharma with Buy Rating, $6 PT

In a report published Wednesday, Aegis Capital Corp. initiated coverage on Galena Biopharma GALE with a Buy rating and $6.00 price target. Aegis Capital noted, “Galena is an emerging biotechnology firm developing a novel immunotherapeutic approach to combating the recurrence of breast cancer in patients with minimal residual disease. The firm's lead candidate, NeuVax (E75 / nelipepimut), is a peptide vaccine that is derived from the extracellular domain of the HER2/neu cell surface receptor protein. The HER2/neu protein is one of the world's most recognizable oncogene products, and is the target of several widelyused breast cancer therapeutic agents, including the blockbuster monoclonal antibody product Herceptin (trastuzumab), marketed by Roche / Genentech (RHHBY.PK, Not Rated). In our view, Galena represents an attractive investment opportunity because it is focusing on a validated target, possesses a solid data foundation showing that its vaccine is active in human subjects, and is conducting a Phase 3 trial of the vaccine that is slated to report interim data in late 2013/early 2014.” Galena Biopharma closed on Tuesday at $1.69.