2023-03-28 12:50:23 ET
Shares of Geron Corporation ( NASDAQ: GERN ) reached the lowest level since late December on Tuesday after Goldman Sachs launched its coverage with a Neutral view noting that the stock already reflects the commercial prospects of its blood cancer therapy imetelstat.
Early this year, Geron ( GERN ) surged after announcing that its IMerge Phase 3 clinical trial for imetelstat achieved key goals in lower-risk myelodysplastic syndromes ( MDS ) patients.
Noting a differentiated clinical profile for imetelstat and considering the unmet medical need and size of the addressable market, the analyst Corinne Jenkins projects $1.0B unadjusted peak global sales for the therapy in low-risk MDS.
"…..while we assume a high likelihood of approval, we see limited potential discovery value for the agent over 2023 as the agent undergoes regulatory review," the analyst wrote, citing the company's plans to seek FDA approval for imetelstat in 2023.
As for Geron's ( GERN ) ongoing efforts to test imetelstat for myelofibrosis, Jenkins argues that the drug's potential will be limited in this setting given the competition and a challenging tolerability profile.
The analyst projects $260M unadjusted peak global sales for imetelstat in myelofibrosis and issues a 12-month price target of $3.00 for the stock.
Read: Seeking Alpha analyst Edmund Ingham also argues that the treatment, which is at least 12 months away from a potential approval, has an uncertain commercial opportunity.
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Geron hits three-month low as Goldman Sachs issues Neutral rating