HC Wainwright has upgraded Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:ARCT) from Neutral to Buy with a price target of $51.

Tuesday, the company released its Q1 earnings and reported that data from an interim analysis of an ongoing Phase 3 booster study conducted in Japan are expected in 2Q23, which are expected to support ARCT-154's regulatory approval as a COVID-19 vaccine booster in Japan. 

Meiji Seika Pharma which has the rights to develop ARCT-154 as a COVID-19 vaccine in Japan, completed enrollment with 828 participants of this Phase 3 booster study in February 2023. 

The analyst writes that the study features a non-inferiority threshold of 0.67, which is a low hurdle for approval. 

The analyst notes that after three years of fits and starts of its COVID-19 vaccine program that included failed candidates and multiple collaborations and partnerships, Arcturus appears to be on the cusp of realizing the value of all its efforts. 

The analyst says that ARCT-154 now has a well-defined regulatory pathway in Japan as a COVID-19 vaccine course and booster and a bivalent vaccine in development for the U.S./EU markets.

Price Action: ARCT shares are up 12.70% at $33.15 on the last check Thursday.