Gold prices slip as stronger dollar, Fed rate uncertainty weigh
Investing.com - BMO Capital has reiterated its Market Perform rating and $97.00 price target on Merus N.V. (NASDAQ:MRUS) following the company’s recent presentation on petosemtamab. The stock is currently trading at $95.10, just 2% below the analyst target, with InvestingPro data showing the shares have surged 126% year-to-date and are trading near their 52-week high of $95.30.
The presentation highlighted petosemtamab’s potential as a treatment option for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) in first-line and second-line settings.
Updated data revealed promising early efficacy profiles, with objective response rates (ORRs) of 80%, 62%, and 10% in first-line, second-line, and third-line mCRC treatments respectively, based on the July 29 data cut-off. This clinical progress comes as Merus has shown nearly 60% revenue growth over the last twelve months, though the company maintains a negative gross profit margin of about -94%.
BMO Capital noted that small sample sizes and unconfirmed responses make the data interpretation "a little less clean" despite the encouraging results.
The firm remains bullish on the pending Genmab-Merus deal, stating that today’s update was not significant enough to meaningfully impact ongoing deal negotiations.
In other recent news, Merus N.V. reported promising interim results from its phase 2 trial of petosemtamab in metastatic colorectal cancer patients. The treatment, targeting EGFR and LGR5, achieved a 100% response rate in first-line left-sided mCRC when combined with standard chemotherapy regimens FOLFOX or FOLFIRI. Furthermore, Genmab A/S has launched a cash tender offer to acquire all outstanding common shares of Merus for $97.00 per share, following a transaction agreement announced in late September. In addition, Merus plans to present initial interim data from this trial at the upcoming AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics. This presentation will include results from petosemtamab used as monotherapy and in combination with standard chemotherapy. Meanwhile, Leerink Partners downgraded Merus stock from Outperform to Market Perform following the acquisition news by Genmab, while slightly raising its price target to $97.00. These developments highlight significant ongoing activities surrounding Merus and its clinical advancements.
This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.