89Bio up as Evercore starts with 'outperform', says NASH asset undervalued

89bio

13/06/2023 15:14

** Shares of drug developer 89Bio Inc  ETNB.O  up 5.8% at
$22.42
    ** Brokerage Evercore ISI initiates stock coverage with
"outperform" rating and assigns $49 PT
    ** Co's experimental drug, pegozafermin, is in mid-stage
trials to treat a type of fatty liver disease called
non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)
    ** Evercore says ETNB trades at a 60% discount to peer Akero
Therapeutics Inc  AKRO.O , which has a similar drug candidate in
a similar stage of development
    ** Adds that its recent physician survey suggests
pegozafermin capturing about 20% share in patient population
using NASH medicines 
    ** Also optimistic on pegozafermin being tested in ongoing
late-stage trial to treat severe hypertriglyceridemia (SHTG), a
condition of excessive fats in the blood that can raise heart
disease risks 
    ** Based on ETNB's more than $480 mln in cash, brokerage
projects runway into 2025 
    ** Anticipates co will need additional funds to complete
late-stage NASH and SHTG trials
    ** Including session's gain, stock up ~76% YTD

 (Reporting by Pratik Jain in Bengaluru)
 ((Pratik.Jain@thomsonreuters.com;))