For some biopharmaceuticals, the plan just doesn’t pan out. After market hours on Tuesday, Altiummune, Inc. (ALT) announced that it would not be moving forward with its Phase 1 trial intranasal COVID vaccine candidate, AdCOVID. The announcement came on the heels of discouraging results in immune responses, and soon thereafter, Altimmune’s share price plummeted 37% in after-hours trading. (See Altimmune stock charts on TipRanks)
Covering the stock’s new position is Jonathan Wolleben of JMP Securities, who wrote that Altimmune still has promising drugs in its pipeline, and these should not be overlooked as potential future upside for the company.
Wolleben rated the stock a Buy, and declared a new price target of $31. Although this is substantially lower than his previous target of $53, it still represents a potential 12-month upside of 94.96% from the stock’s closing Tuesday closing price of $15.90. In the early hours of Wednesday, ALT shares were being traded at prices around $9.85.
The four-star analyst stayed true to his bullish conviction, and explained that because of the sudden massive drop in share price, he does “not see a better entry point for investors on the horizon with 12-week data for ALT-801 coming in 3Q21.”
Regarding the cancellation of the AdCOVID vaccine candidate, Wolleben opined that this was a “prudent move from management,” as the immune responses were less than what the already-established vaccines yielded. He was optimistic that investors will now be able to focus on the soon-to-be released ALT-801 results. ALT-801 is intended to treat non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
Additionally, Altimmune’s T-COVID therapy is most likely “done as well,” due to a reduction in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. along with a productive vaccine program. However, the analyst included that T-COVID does not impact his valuation, as it was not baked in as a guaranteed success.
Wolleben mentioned that the company has enough cash-on-hand to carry it into 2023, and as such investors should not be concerned about liquidity.
On TipRanks, ALT has an analyst rating consensus of Strong Buy, based on 5 Buy ratings. The average Altimmune price target is $33.80, reflecting a possible 112.58% upside from Tuesday’s closing price. This figure will most likely swing to a different number upon market open on Wednesday.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analyst. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
