Bluebird 'Potentially The Walter White Of CAR T Therapy,' Says BTIG

After market close on Wednesday, bluebird bio Inc BLUE released early data on the relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma study. Traders flocked to the stock after the good news, and the stock was up 22 percent after hours, spiking to $74.45 at market open Thursday, before leveling out at $71.40 mid day.

BTIG Still Says Buy

Following a conference call hosted Thursday morning to discuss the results, BTIG Equity Research analyst Dana Leone published a note maintaining the earlier stated Buy rating and $83 price target on the stock, while highlighting that the dataset hints at a bluebird and Celgene Corporation CELG combo having an “X-factor” in manufacturing CAR T products.

In an earlier published note, the analyst highlights the strong efficacy and low toxicity points demonstrated by the early data with no obvious patient differences when compared with competitor data.

“As a result, we do think the know-how of Celgene manufacturing combined with the lentiviral tech transfer from BLUE may be an X factor supporting initially superior results versus the competition,” said Leone.

At time of writing, bluebird shares were trading up around 18 percent at $71.16.