2023-05-08 09:26:30 ET
Morgan Stanley has initiated Silence Therapeutics ( NASDAQ: SLN ) with an overweight rating saying that the company's RNAi platform and pipeline, particularly zerlasiran for cardiovascular disease.
The firm has a $20 price target (~215% upside based on Friday's close).
Analyst Michael Ulz highlighted the company's RNAi GOLD (GalNAc Oligonucleotide Discovery) platform that uses short interfering RNA (siRNA) to target and silence specific disease-causing genes. "Over the past several years, this approach has been well established, resulting in multiple approved therapies with a higher probability of success in early clinical development compared to more traditional approaches."
He noted that phase 1 data for zerlasiran indicated strong target knockdown.
Given that ~20% of the world's population (~1.4B people) have high levels of Lp(a) (lipoprotein a, a type of LDL), and there are no approved therapies, zerlasiran could fit an unmet medical need.
He estimates a potential market opportunity of more than $30B "similar to the cholesterol lowering market."
Silence ( SLN ) is also set to benefit from upcoming catalysts, Ulz noted. This includes the multi-dose portion of the APOLLO study, expected in Q4, followed by data from an ongoing phase 2 study, ALPHACAR-360 study, expected in mid 2024.
More on Silence Therapeutics
Silence Therapeutics: Breaking The Silence On An Under-The-Radar Mid-Stage SiRNA Platform
Silence Therapeutics: Excellent Data In A Cardiovascular Indication
For further details see:
Silence Therapeutics overweight at Morgan Stanley on RNAi platform