BioCryst Downgraded By JPMorgan, Analysts Await 'More Data'

• The share price of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. BCRX has plunged 82.53 percent over the past one year, reaching within 2¢ of its 52 week low on February 8.
• J.P. Morgan’s Jessica Fye has downgraded the rating on the company from Overweight to Neutral, while lowering the price target from $16 to $5.
• Following the disappointing Phase IIb OPuS data for avoralstat, Fye prefers to move to the sidelines till there is more data regarding the company’s lead asset.

Analyst Jessica Fye mentioned that on February 8, “BioCryst reported unexpected and disappointing phase IIb OPuS-2 data for lead asset avoralstat which did not meet its primary endpoint of preventing HAE attacks compared to placebo.”

Despite this, Fye continues to believe that there could be attractive longer term opportunity for an oral anti-kallikrein in the prevention of HAE, along with avoralstat or ‘7353 having the potential to turn into meaningful products.

Clinical updates for these assets are expected through the year, which Fye believes would bring greater visibility into the respective profiles.

According to the J.P. Morgan report, “The exposure profile achieved by the liquid formulation of avoralstat was insufficient for efficacy.” However, the high dose of 500 mg did show improvements in terms of the secondary endpoints.

Following these results, the liquid gel cap form of avoralstat has been stopped.