Needham & Company analyst Chad Messer reiterated a Buy rating and $50 price target on Sarepta Therapeutic (NASDAQ: SRPT) saying they maintain high conviction in Eteplirsen approval.

Messer commented, "SRPT shares have pulled back from recent highs due to concerns that etelpirsen's later than expected FDA Advisory Committee Meeting (AdComm) will hurt approval chances. With the AdComm now after (as opposed to before) the PDUFA date for competitor drisaspersen, the concern is for a higher bar for eteplirsen approval. We disagree (see below). We continue to expect conditional approval of both disaspersen and eteplirsen and maintain our view that eteplirsen is the better drug due to its superior safety profile. We reiterate our Buy rating."

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Shares of Sarepta Therapeutic closed at $24.28 yesterday.