The coronavirus pandemic is still making headlines; it’s presenting us with a stubborn problem, one that won’t go away and resists the normal weapons that modern medicine has brought against it. The result is a sense of fatalism, that we may as well just get used to corona. No one likes that idea.
The medical researchers, especially, aren’t liking that, and they are working to bring new techniques to bear on the virus. Among the more promising is the ‘pan-COVID’ approach, the development of a vaccine that promises good effect against multiple variants of this highly variable virus.
Jefferies analyst Roger Song lays out the case for a ‘pan-COVID’ shot: “Current COVID-19 vaccine boosters have shown enhanced immune response against the widespread Omicron variant and, importantly, could prevent severe disease and hospitalization, but there is a keen need for a vaccine addressing future potential variants and ultimately helping end the pandemic. A possible solution is a pan-CV19 vaccine against all known/unknown variants.”
Multiple clinical-stage drug companies are working on this approach, through several lines of research. We’ve used the TipRanks database to bring up details on two of those companies, to which Song has recently given a thumbs-up of approval. These are Strong Buy stocks, according to the analyst community, with plenty of upside potential – enough for them to triple or more in the coming year. Let’s see what the analyst has to say about them.
Icosavax (ICVX)
We’ll start with Icosavax, a medical research company focuses solely on vaccine development. Icosavax currently has two active research tracks in its pipeline, for vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus and SARS-CoV-2. These tracks are based on VLP (virus-like particle) technology, a second-generation vaccine technology with the potential to create best-in-class, safe, durable, and effective immunological results from single dose.
The company’s relevant research track here is the COVID vaccine, IVX-411. This experimental vaccine product is a self-assembling protein nanoparticle that stimulates an immune response to COVID’s spike proteins. In pre-clinical testing, and in research on mice and non-human primates, the vax candidate was shown to induce ‘robust neutralizing antibody titers and protection from viral challenge.’ The candidate is now undergoing Phase 1/2 testing, with interim topline data due out this quarter.
Icosavax has received support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for the COVID-19 vax program, to the tune of a $10 million grant. These funds are being used to carry out the current clinical trial in young and older adults.
In his coverage of this stock, Roger Song sees the COVID vax program as an important factor differentiating Icosavax from competitors. He writes, “IVX-411 Ph1/2 interim/topline data are on track 1Q22 with new evaluation against Omicron. The company plans to evaluate efficacy of ‘411 against Omicron variant, and it has also initiated a potential Omicron VLP vaccine candidate as a back-up CV19 vaccine… the success of IVX-411 could validate/de-risk the platform. Importantly, we think Ph1/2 CV19 data could help support the hypothesis that VLPs are better than other platforms at eliciting nAb and for better safety/tolerability.”
These comments back up Song’s Buy rating, and his $50 price target suggests the stock has an upside potential of ~222% for the next 12 months. (To watch Song’s track record, click here)
That Wall Street is impressed with this company is clear from the unanimous Strong Buy consensus rating, based on 4 recent stock reviews. The analysts all agree that this Buy-rated stock has potential to hit $50, matching Song’s objective (See ICVX stock forecast on TipRanks)
VBI Vaccines (VBIV)
The second stock we’ll look at, VBI Vaccines, is another well-known vaccine maker with a focus on human diseases. VBI is a pioneer in virus-like particle technology (VLP) vaccines, and has expanded that approach to deal with newer viral disease threats. These emerging and re-emerging viruses are ‘enveloped viruses,’ that is, they are surrounded by a fragment of the host cell’s own membrane, giving them a degree of protection against the host organism’s immune system.
VBI has developed an enveloped VLP (eVLP) technology platform, to create vaccines and a immunological medicines capable of coping with these newer viruses. Prominent in the company’s eVLP vax program are VBI-2902 and VBI-2901, two variants of a COVID-19 vaccine. 2902 is a monovalent program currently in the Phase 1 clinical trial stage. 2901, still in preclinical testing, is a multi-valent pan-corona vaccine candidate capable of acting against the spike proteins of SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV, and MERS-CoV. Both of these vax candidates are supported by the Canadian Government’s Strategic Innovation Fund.
Early data on 2902 shows that the vaccine candidate demonstrates a broadened immune response against the COVID-19 viral agent. Data on the vax candidate was published in July and September of 2021.
On the 2901 track, the company expects to initiate human clinical trials later this year. The expected Phase 1 study of the trivalent pan-coronavirus vaccine is designed to test its effectiveness in creating ‘breadth of immunity’ against a range of COVID-19 variants and betacoronaviruses.
Writing on VBI’s approach to corona, Roger Song says, “We see the universal coronavirus vaccine as the most intriguing in the CV19 vaccine franchise. VBIV is developing three vaccines against CV19 [including] a trivalent (VBI-2901; SARS-COV-2/COVID-19, SARS-COV/SARS and MERS-COV)…. Importantly, ‘2901 could protect against known and emerging/unknown CV-19 variants, with high level of nAb against the three coronaviruses in the vaccine, as well as to a coronavirus not in the vaccine, as shown in preclinical studies, potentially providing a single-shot solution vs. other approaches such as updated version to address new circulating strains.”
Coming from this stance, Song rates VBIV a Buy, and his $6 price target indicates room for 220% upside by the end of this year.
The Jefferies analyst is not alone in his bullish stance; this stock’s 3 recent reviews are all positive, giving it a unanimous Strong Buy rating. The shares are selling for $1.87 and the $7.67 average price target implies a robust one-year upside of ~315% from that level. (See VBIV stock forecast on TipRanks)
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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
