Leerink more bullish on Regenxbio, upgrades to Outperform

As previously reported, Leerink analyst Mani Foroohar upgraded Regenxbio to Outperform from Market Perform with a price target of $37, up from $24. With the Phase 1/2 AFFINITY DUCHENNE update, RGX-202 has accumulated enough data to suggest a path to a differentiated role in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, or DMD, the firm says. Despite shares up 37.1% vs. XBI +11.4% year-to-date, Leerink sees shift of investor focus from wet AMD/diabetic retinopathy to rare disease/DMD as a tailwind through the year ahead. With Regenxbio valued more as a DMD story, the company will benefit from substantial regulatory flexibility and unmet need in this indication – vs. wet AMD where competitive and regulatory bar for success is quite high, Leerink adds.