Shares in Kymera Therapeutics (KYMR) popped 10% in Friday’s trading after the company announced positive interim data from a non-interventional trial evaluating KT-474 at the Annual Symposium on Hidradenitis Suppurativa Advances.
Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a painful, long term skin condition that is thought to affect about 1% of the population and causes abscesses and scarring. The exact cause is unknown, but it occurs near hair follicles where there are sweat glands.
Novel therapeutics targeting IRAK4 based on protein degradation are being developed for the treatment of HS. The study was therefore designed to characterize IRAK4 expression in the skin and blood of HS patients.
According to Kymera, KT-474, an IRAK4 degrader, reduced IRAK4 to a level approaching the lower limits of detection across all peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) subsets irrespective of baseline expression intensity.
“The results to date in HS patients support our plans for clinical development of KT-474, and we are on track to initiate a Phase 1 trial in the first half of 2021” stated CEO Nello Mainolfi. It is enrolling 30 HS patients and 10 patients with atopic dermatitis.
Over the last month, shares have climbed 18% and the stock scores a cautiously optimistic Moderate Buy Street consensus. That’s with analysts split between hold and buy ratings. Meanwhile the average analyst price target of $35 indicates shares could pullback 6% from current levels.
Morgan Stanley’s Vikram Purohit initiated Kymera with a Hold rating and a price target of $27 (27% downside potential) after the company recently went public.
The analyst explained: “Kymera’s three protein degraders address high-potential targets across inflammation and oncology. Lead program KT-474 could drive $1B+ in unadjusted peak sales, and we see significant optionality in Kymera’s broad platform. However, we believe current levels imply significant pipeline value.” (See KYMR stock analysis on TipRanks)
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