H.C. Wainwright double upgrades Intercept on potential in PBC

H.C. Wainwright analyst Ed Arce double upgraded Intercept Pharmaceuticals to Buy from Sell with a price target of $19, up from $8. The analyst says three “major value-inflection points” have occurred since May of 2022 for Intercept: obeticholic acid in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis received a second Complete Response Letter, prompting the company to discontinue the NASH program entirely, the company announced interim Phase 2 dose-ranging data from its Ocaliva plus bezafibrate combination, the first such data in primary biliary cirrhosis patients, and Genfit and partner Ipsen announced positive data in PBC from the Phase 3 ELATIVE trial of elafibranor. While the drug’s risk-benefit profile leaves little doubt of its approvability, elafibranor did not show a reduction in pruritus, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm now expects Intercept may continue to grow and significantly expand the PBC market along with CymaBay and GSK. It believes Intercept’s life-cycle management combo therapy has the potential to substantially extend the PBC business and garner a significant share of the market.