| Thursday | ||||
Conference call to… Conference call to discuss the Company's corporate strategy, TAZVERIK developmental plans and recent advancements in the epigenetic pipeline will be held on March 2 at 10 am. Webcast Link | ||||
As previously reported,… As previously reported, Morgan Stanley analyst David Lebowitz downgraded Epizyme to Equal Weight from Overweight with a price target of $14, down from $27, following Q4 results that he said illustrate how the pandemic continues to weigh on the launch of Tazverik for the treatment of follicular lymphoma, or FL. He expects 2021 to continue to be a challenging launch environment, leading him to lower his Tazverik sales expectations and downgrade the stock, Lebowitz tells investors in a research note. | ||||
Morgan Stanley analyst… Morgan Stanley analyst David Lebowitz downgraded Epizyme to Equal Weight from Overweight with a $14 price target. | ||||
| Wednesday | ||||
Citi analyst Mohit Bansal… Citi analyst Mohit Bansal lowered the firm's price target on Epizyme to $27 from $35 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. While investor expectations for Tazverik Q4 numbers were low at $6M-$7M, the actual sales of $4.5M was disappointing, Bansal tells investors in a research note. The analyst lowered near-term sales estimates for Tazverik as he's now less confident in the launch trajectory. However, Bansal remains optimistic about the long-term value and potential of the asset. | ||||
| Over a week ago | ||||
Based on its current… Based on its current operating plans, Epizyme expects its current cash runway to extend into 2023. | ||||
Reports Q4 revenue $8.4M,… Reports Q4 revenue $8.4M, consensus $6.19M. "Epizyme cemented its position as a leader in epigenetics in 2020, with back-to-back accelerated approvals for TAZVERIK, the first and only FDA-approved EZH2 inhibitor. Following the approvals, we quickly reached epithelioid sarcoma and follicular lymphoma patients in need, adapting our physician and patient outreach efforts to meet the unique challenges presented by the evolving COVID-19 pandemic," said Robert Bazemore, President and CEO. "While the resurgence of COVID-19 cases in the fourth quarter extended many of these challenges, the adoption of TAZVERIK in both ES and FL continued to expand, with net revenue increasing 31% in the fourth quarter from the third quarter. Importantly, our sales and medical affairs teams continue to make progress reaching and educating physicians, reflected in the more than 50% increase in new accounts prescribing TAZVERIK during the fourth quarter. In addition to launch execution, we are encouraged by our clinical progress throughout 2020, during which we achieved all trial milestones on or ahead of schedule. Armed with sufficient capital to support our planned commercial and clinical execution, we believe Epizyme is well-positioned for success in 2021 and beyond." |
| Over a month ago | ||||
Following a failure to… Following a failure to commercialize its "promising oral cancer drug" due to the pandemic and a lack of corporate partnerships, Epizyme is "vulnerable to an activist investor that could push for a sale or at least seek partners with better industry relationships," said Insightia, contacts tell The Fly. Insightia is the owner of Activist Insight and Proxy Insight, which "provide a variety of shareholder activism, corporate governance, and shareholder voting data to a diverse range of clients around the world." | ||||
In a regulatory filing… In a regulatory filing last night, Epizyme reported that on December 21, the company received written notice from Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, or "BII," that BII has elected to terminate the collaboration agreement dated November 14, 2018, by and between the company and BII, as amended by Amendment No. 1, dated March 10, 2020, and Amendment No. 2, dated September 17, 2020. BII terminated the collaboration agreement without cause, and in accordance with the terms of the agreement, and the parties have agreed that the termination will be effective on January 31, 2021, Epizyme said. Under the collaboration agreement, the parties had agreed to discover, research, develop and commercialize small molecule compounds that are inhibitors of an undisclosed histone acetyltransferase target and an undisclosed helicase target in indications chosen by BII. As a result of the termination of the collaboration agreement, as of the termination date the licenses granted by the company to BII and the reciprocal licenses will terminate, BII will cease to accrue any financial obligations to the company and the company will be entitled to pursue the HAT target and helicase target programs in all fields worldwide without further obligation to BII, Epizyme added. | ||||
As previously reported,… As previously reported, Jefferies analyst Michael Yee downgraded Epizyme to Hold from Buy with a price target of $14, down from $18. While the launch for Tazverik is progressing, given the logistical challenges of a launch during the pandemic as well as ASH COVID-19 pandemic guidelines that continue to recommend a "watchful waiting" approach to new therapies for indolent lymphomas, he is below consensus with his own view for 2021, Yee tells investors. For 2021, he forecasts sales for Tazverik of $53M, which Yee notes is about 30% below the consensus revenue forecast of $75M. | ||||
Jefferies analyst Michael… Jefferies analyst Michael Yee downgraded Epizyme to Hold from Buy with a $14 price target. | ||||