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On Thursday, H.C. Wainwright analyst Mitchell Kapoor reaffirmed a Buy rating and a $2.00 price target for Century Therapeutics (NASDAQ:IPSC), representing significant upside from the current price of $0.54. The micro-cap company, currently valued at $46.5 million, maintains a strong Buy consensus among analysts with price targets ranging from $2.00 to $8.00. Kapoor’s review followed a webcast event earlier in the week where Century presented its preclinical pipeline, showcasing advancements in its proprietary AlloEvasion technology used in cell therapies.
Century Therapeutics has evolved its AlloEvasion platform from the first-generation 1.0, utilized in its sole clinical-stage asset CNTY-101, to the current fifth-generation AlloEvasion 5.0. According to InvestingPro data, the company’s overall Financial Health Score is rated as WEAK, though it maintains a healthy current ratio of 1.5. The initial version featured three key genetic edits designed to help the company’s cell therapies avoid detection by the immune system. These edits included the elimination of HLA-I and HLA-II expression to prevent lysis by host CD8+ and CD4+ T cells, respectively, and the expression of HLA-E to prevent NK cell lysis.
The latest AlloEvasion 5.0 retains the HLA-I and HLA-II deletion edits while adding new features such as the insertion of CD300a TASR pan-NK inhibitory ligand and a cell-surface enzyme that degrades IgG antibodies. These enhancements are aimed at improving the ability of Century’s cell therapies to evade immune responses.
Additionally, Century highlighted its CNTY-301, an iPSC-derived CD19 CAR-iT product candidate for B-cell mediated diseases. The company announced plans to prepare CNTY-301 for IND-enabling studies by mid-2025, signaling progress in its pipeline development.
Kapoor expressed optimism about the preclinical data presented by Century, noting that the data appears encouraging. With the next earnings report due on May 8, investors should note that the stock has experienced significant volatility, with a beta of 1.84. According to InvestingPro analysis, Century Therapeutics appears undervalued at current levels. The analyst reiterated the firm’s Buy rating and 12-month price target of $2, maintaining a positive outlook on Century Therapeutics’ stock despite its challenging YTD return of -46.53%.
In other recent news, Century Therapeutics announced a significant shift in its development pipeline, discontinuing its CNTY-101 program for B cell lymphomas due to insufficient transformative clinical data. This decision led H.C. Wainwright to lower its price target for Century Therapeutics from $5.00 to $2.00, although the firm maintained a Buy rating, citing potential applications of CNTY-101 in autoimmune diseases. Guggenheim also revised its price target downward from $12.00 to $5.00, while keeping a Buy rating, following the company’s fiscal year 2024 results and strategic updates. The company has started enrolling patients in the Phase I CALiPSO-1 trial for autoimmune conditions and plans to begin dosing soon. Additionally, Century Therapeutics faces a potential Nasdaq delisting due to its stock price falling below the $1.00 minimum bid requirement for 31 consecutive days. The company has until August 25, 2025, to regain compliance by maintaining a closing bid price at or above $1.00 for at least 10 consecutive days. If unsuccessful, Century has the option to transfer its listing to the Nasdaq Capital Market for an additional compliance period. Century Therapeutics is actively exploring strategies to address this issue and ensure compliance with Nasdaq’s listing requirements.
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