Bernstein Lists Active Buyers Of Ophthalmology Companies

Allergan plc Ordinary Shares AGN, Alcon, Shire PLC (ADR) SHPG and, to a lesser extent, Bausch & Lomb are the active buyers of ophthalmology products/companies, according to a note from Bernstein citing venture capitalist Emmett Cunningham.

Of note, Alcon is a subsidiary of Novartis AG (ADR) NVS and Bausch & Lomb was acquired by Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc VRX.

Cunningham is an ophthalmologist, a partner at Clarus Funds and a leading venture capitalist in the eye-care space.

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"We wonder if Shire is not highly motivated to buy one of the two Glaucoma companies – Aerie or Inotek," analyst Aaron "Ronny" Gal posed.

In addition to the top active buyers, Gal looked further into the sector.

The note said, Genentech is active in ophthalmology but are only looking for large improvement over standard of care (first-in-class/best-in class)," while Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc REGN is somewhat active in the space as well.

Bernstein rates Allergan at Outperform, with a price target of $335. Shire is also rated Outperform, with a price target of $222.

At the time of writing, shares of Allergan were down 1.26 percent to $246.81, and Regeneron Pharma dropped 0.65 percent to $386.44. Meanwhile, ADRs of Shire also fell 1.45 percent to $185.88.