Stifel downgrades Ventyx Biosciences after ‘disappointing’ VTX958 data

Stifel downgraded Ventyx Biosciences to Hold from Buy with a price target of $6, down from $56, following the “disappointing data” from the VTX958 Phase 2 psoriasis study and discontinuation of the psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis programs. The firm, which had been “big believers” in the TYK2 dose-exposure hypothesis, no longer has conviction after VTX958 failed to achieve comparable efficacy to drugs from Bristol Myers (BMY) or Takeda (TAK) despite achieving full IC90 coverage. The data also “make it hard to gain conviction” in the VTX958 Crohn’s trial that the company is now planning for Q1 of 2024, adds the analyst, who has removed psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis indications from the firm’s model and lowered its view of the odds of success in IBD.