Acorda gains ground on Robert W. Baird outlook
Monday November 3, 6:53 pm ET
Acorda Therapeutics shares rise on Baird upgrade, positive outlook for multiple sclerosis drug
NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Acorda Therapeutics Inc. rose Monday after a Robert W. Baird analyst upgraded the stock, citing the prospects for the biotechnology company's developing multiple sclerosis drug Fampridine-SR.
The stock gained $1.02, or 5 percent, to reach $21.42. Shares have traded between $14.91 and $35.65 over the past 52 weeks.
The Hawthorne, N.Y.-based company has previously said it expects to ask the Food and Drug Administration for Fampridine-SR approval in the first quarter of 2009. The drug also previously met its goal of improving walking in multiple sclerosis patients during a late-stage study and would receive special status by the FDA if approved, giving it seven years of market exclusivity.
"We would see a great potential for use of Fampridine-SR given the substantial use of pharmacotherapy for other symptoms of multiple sclerosis and the absence of any therapy for those targeted by Fampridine-SR," said Robert W. Baird & Co. analyst Lawrence Neibor, in a note to investors.
He upgraded the stock to "Outperform" from "Neutral" and boosted the price target to $33 from $31. He based the upgrade partly on a physician survey to determine the potential market for the drug candidate. In that survey, between 25 percent and 63 percent of physicians estimated that their patients experience walking difficulty, depending on the type of multiple sclerosis.
There is a need for the drug, from a clinical perspective, according to the survey, and physicians said 30 percent of their patients are the likely market for the drug candidate.
Based on the survey, Neibor expects peak market share for the drug to reach 25 percent by the fourth quarter of 2012, assuming a launch during the second quarter of 2010. |
