Aimmune An Opportunity For Unmet Needs

• Aimmune Therapeutics Inc AIMT shares have been declining this month, after peaking at $26.63 on August 14.
• Credit Suisse’s Vamil Divan initiated coverage of the company with an Outperform rating and a price target of $44.
• Divan believes there is opportunity for upside from the unmet needs in managing food allergies.

Analyst Vamil Divan said that Aimmune is among the leaders in developing treatments to help manage life-threatening food allergies. The company has an initial focus on the large unmet need in peanut allergies.

“Its lead product, AR101, has shown encouraging efficacy and safety data in phase 2, with phase 3 scheduled to start in early 2016 and end in 2H 2017, setting the stage for potential commercial launch in 2018,” Divan wrote.

The only true near-term competitor for Aimmune is DBV Technologies SA – ADR DBVT, with its Viaskin Patch. “We see this market being more than large enough for two players and see AR101 holding some important advantages over DBVT’s Viaskin Patch,” the Credit Suisse report stated.

Divan added that among the investment positives is the potential for Aimmune’s Characterized Oral Desensitization Immunotherapy, or CODIT, approach to be leveraged in other allergies. The phase 2 studies are scheduled to begin next year.

Referring to valuation, the analyst said, “100% DCF, with projected cash flows through 2030.”