H.C. Wainwright Reiterates Buy Rating on Neumora Therapeutics (NMRA)

H.C. Wainwright analyst Douglas Tsao reiterated a Buy rating and $30.00 price target on Neumora Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NMRA).

The analyst commented: "The KOASTAL-1 result was a surprise and disappointment, though the better results for female patients give us reason to remain confident in the drug's mechanism and pharmacology. This gives us some optimism that we'll see a better outcome in the ongoing KOASTAL-2 and KOASTAL-3 studies. In particular, we're encouraged by the statistically significant difference in SHAPS score among female patients (-7.2 navacaprant vs. -4.9 placebo, LSMD=-2.3, p=0.015). The much better results for female patients is not that surprising because differences in response to MDD treatments across gender have been reported in many studies (European Neuropsychopharmacology, 2023; IJNP, 2022). Management noted to us there is some evidence the KORA mechanism could have differential effects across gender, but acknowledged that it isn't conclusive. Along those lines, we'd note the proportion of female patients in navacaprant's Phase 2 study was ~70% (62/88 in treatment group and 58/83 in placebo group), in which the study demonstrated LSMD=-4.8 at week 8. Notably, women are twice as likely as men to suffer from MDD and are more commonly treated with antidepressants. It's not clear whether the FDA would be willing to consider approval in female patients alone, but if the drug does have a differential effect in women, then the market opportunity would be reduced only modestly. Within the male population, we'd note there was high placebo response. The 80mg dose is well-tolerated among patients, and the company will be conducting PK analyses to see if there was an exposure-related effect. Reiterate Buy rating and $30 PT."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Neumora Therapeutics click here. For more ratings news on Neumora Therapeutics click here.

Shares of Neumora Therapeutics closed at $1.97 yesterday.

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