Silk Road Medical downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan

JPMorgan downgraded Silk Road Medical to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $28, down from $50. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services last night released a proposed decision memo, which revised Medicare coverage for percutaneous transluminal angioplasty of the cartotid arteries concurrent with stenting, by expanding coverage to individuals previously only eligible for coverage in clinical trials, expanding coverage to standard surgical risk patients as well as high risk versus only high risk previously, and removing facility standards and approval requirements among other changes, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm believes the news “places a difficult overhang” on Silk Road shares, one that will take time to either confirm or disprove.