Sorrento Therapeutics (SRNE) might not receive widespread coverage on Wall Street, but one analyst has repeatedly banged the drum for the drug maker.
H.C. Wainwright’s Ram Selvaraju thinks SRNE shares are significantly undervalued. Backing his Buy rating with a $26 price target, the analyst sees shares climbing ~430% in the year ahead. (To watch Selvaraju’s track record, click here)
Selvaraju’s latest endorsement follows another positive development from the company’s ever-expanding covid-related pipeline.
On Monday, the company said that initial lab testing of COVISTIX – the company’s Covid-19 rapid antigen detection test – showed that in addition to being able to detect the original SARS-CoV-2 virus and other significant variants of concern (VoCs) including the Delta and Delta-plus strains, the test can identify the Omicron variant. Not only that, but the lab results show that it could detect the Omicron N protein at a much lower level than other Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) approved, commercially-available tests.
This could be a big plus for Sorrento’s test as some of the approved tests have found it difficult to detect the Omicron N protein at low levels which could lead to wrong negative readings of infected asymptomatic patients. This in turn could have implications on outbreaks due to the spread of the variant.
The company is presently expanding its manufacturing capacity in the U.S and believes it can produce 30 million COVISTIX tests a month. By 1Q22, Sorrento expects to have a fully automated assembly line up and running which will be able to manufacture 6 million COVISTIX units a month. During next year, this capacity could possibly rise to between 50 and 100 million a month, depending on US and global demand.
COVISTIX is already CE marked in Europe and has gained approval in Brazil and Mexico.
In fact, the company also recently announced that its Mexican subsidiary had put into action a second contract with a big distributor for the sale and distribution of up to 10 million COVISTIX tests in Mexico. Prior to that, Sorrento Mexico had signed on the dotted line with a leading local distributor for an order of up to 5 million COVISTIX tests.
With Covid-19 still very much an ongoing concern, Selvaraju anticipates Sorrento will “remain a topical stock in light of recent resurgences in COVID-19 cases across the globe.” Interestingly, however, the current model does not include any contribution from the company’s extensive Covid-19 portfolio.
Only one other analyst is currently keeping an eye on SRNE’s progress, but he’s also optimistic. Combined with the extra Buy, the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, while the $22.50 average price target suggests one-year gains of a huge 358%. (See Sorrento stock forecast on TipRanks)
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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.
