KROS - Keros Therapeutics a buy at Cowen on candidates for PAH myelofibrosis

• Cowen has initiated Keros Therpeutics ( NASDAQ: KROS ) with a buy rating saying that two of the company's lead pipeline assets could best treatments in their disease areas.
• The firm did not set a price target.
• Analyst Tyler Van Buren said that KER-012 and KER-050, under development for, respectively, pulmonary arterial hypertension and myelofibrosis and myelodysplastic syndromes ( MDS ), are gearing up to outperform Merck's ( MRK ) phase 3 sotatercept and Bristol-Myers Squibb's ( BMY ) Reblozyl (luspatercept).
• He noted that sotatercept has caused hemoglobin increases that limits dosing to 25-40% target engagement. In comparison, no such increases have been seen with KER-012 -- currently in phase 1 -- with maximum engagement, "which should enable higher dosing and greater efficacy."
• On KER-050, which is in phase 2, Van Buren said that it has a 50% rate of transfusion independence compared to Reblozyl’s 38%.
• The analyst projects KER-012 could generate ~$2.6B in sales, while KER-050 could bring in ~$2.1B just in the MDS indication by 2035.
• Read why Seeking Alpha contributor Zach Bristow recently called Keros ( KROS ) a buy.

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