Vitae's Drug Potential 'Significant,' Stifel Upgrades To Buy

Stifel’s Thomas Shrader upgraded the rating for Vitae Pharmaceuticals Inc VTAE from Hold to Buy, with a price target of $15, after the company reported top line data for VTP-43742 indicating significant potential.

Vitae reported that statistically significant PASI reductions were seen in two dose groups of 350mg and 700mg QD after four weeks of dosage.

“The PASI reductions for both groups were statistically significant and the reductions in PASI scores at four weeks were greater than those seen for MTX and comparable to those seen for Otezla after four weeks of treatment,” analyst Thomas Shrader noted.

In the highest reported dose groups, liver enzyme elevations were seen in four patients that were reversible after the dosage ended.

Expectations

VTP-43742 appears to be a more valuable asset after the release of this data, Shrader said. The launch date of the drug is likely to be pushed by a year, as the company may need to carry out more work to determine the dose that shows efficacy while staying away from the liver enzyme elevation signal.

“We are returning VTP-43742 to our models with a slightly decreased discount rate (25% from 30%) resulting in a price target of $15,” Shrader wrote. He added that a 25 percent discount rate appropriately reflects the development stage and commercial risks associated with the drug.