Citi analyst Yigal Nochomovitz initiated coverage of Rigel Pharmaceuticals with a Buy rating and $8.50 price target. The shares closed Friday up 1c to $2.81. The analyst says his U.S. physician survey supports his $400M U.S. peak sales estimate for Tavalisse in immune thrombocytopenia, which launched in April. Further, Nochomovitz assigned a 50% probability for Tavalisse's second indication, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, with Phase 2 data expected in the first half of 2019. Rigel Pharmaceuticals CEO Raul Rodriguez last week gave The Fly an exclusive interview.