Akero Therapeutics initiated with a Buy at UBS

UBS analyst Eliana Merle initiated coverage of Akero Therapeutics with a Buy rating and $83 price target. Akero’s FGF21 analog efruxifermin, or EFX, will enter two Phase 3 trials in NASH in the second half and Phase 2b SYMMETRY trial in NASH cirrhosis topline data is guided for Q4, notes the firm, which sees NASH as an “underappreciated market opportunity broadly” and thinks the FGF21 class “could lead the field longer-term.” The firm thinks Akero has a potential first-in-class FGF21 in NASH and “potential to have the highest efficacy across the NASH field more broadly,” the analyst tells investors.