As previously reported, Raymond James analyst Reni Benjamin upgraded Ziopharm to Outperform from Market Perform, with a $5 price target. The analyst notes that the company provided an update on its cell and gene therapy programs in a recent conference call, saying it has severed its relationship with Intrexon, eliminating $157M million in preferred stock and significantly simplifying its corporate structure. Additionally, Ziopharm said that in conjunction with Steven Rosenberg and the NCI, it plans to utilize the Sleeping Beauty neoantigen platform to generate patient specific TCRs, with the filing of an IND expected by year end 2018/early 2019, he pointed out, adding that a cash infusion of $50M from long-term investors should extend the company's cash runway to Q2 of 2020.