Kamada (NASDAQ:KMDA) traded higher on Wednesday after Stifel launched its coverage with a buy recommendation, arguing that the company’s R&D program targeted at a rare lung disorder called AAT deficiency is its “most underappreciated component.“
Stifel’s bullish view comes at a time when the Israeli biotech, which boasts a portfolio of plasma-derived protein therapeutics, is enrolling patients in a pivotal Phase 3 trial for its lead asset, inhaled AAT, against AATD.
While Kamada’s specialty plasma business remains stable and profitable, expanding at double digits, “we are more intrigued by its development of inhaled alpha-1 antitrypsin/AAT for the treatment of" AATD, analyst Annabel Samimy wrote with an $18 per share target.
She argued that Sanofi’s (SNY) recent acquisition of Inhibrx Inc. and its AATD candidate, INBRX-101, for $1.7B has further generated investor interest in this space.
“We largely see its late-stage inhaled AAT program as an uncaptured component of the story that can no longer be ignored given the late stage of development and recent efforts by FDA to facilitate development in the space,” Samimy added.