Aerpio Pharmaceuticals Inc (ARPO) Initiated with a Buy at Cantor Fitzgerald


Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Eliana Merle initiated coverage with a Buy rating on Aerpio Pharmaceuticals Inc (ARPO) today and set a price target of $8. The company’s shares closed yesterday at $3.06.

Merle observed:

“. We are initiating on ARPO with an Overweight rating and an $8 price target. Aerpio has a market cap of ~$120M vs. cash of ~$70M. Lead asset AKB-9778 is a subQ in Ph2b (TIME-2B) for milder forms of diabetic retinopathy (DR), with top-line data expected this March. We think most investors are overlooking this asset after it missed its primary endpoint in an earlier Ph2 (TIME-2). However, we took a detailed look at TIME-2B trial and we think there is a real possibility that AKB-9778 is active and this enriched trial works. On positive data, we think ARPO shares could trade up 300-500% or higher. If AKB-9778 is successful, we think it sells $1B+ at peak.”

According to TipRanks.com, Merle is a 1-star analyst with an average return of -4.2% and a 42.9% success rate. Merle covers the Healthcare sector, focusing on stocks such as AnaptysBio Inc, Galapagos NV, and BioMarin.

Currently, the analyst consensus on Aerpio Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $9.

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The company has a one-year high of $5.25 and a one-year low of $1.56. Currently, Aerpio Pharmaceuticals Inc has an average volume of 77.53K.

Based on the recent corporate insider activity of 16 insiders, corporate insider sentiment is positive on the stock. This means that over the past quarter there has been an increase of insiders buying their shares of ARPO in relation to earlier this year.

TipRanks has tracked 36,000 company insiders and found that a few of them are better than others when it comes to timing their transactions. See which 3 stocks are most likely to make moves following their insider activities.

Aerpio Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company, which engages in the research and development of treatments for ocular diseases. Its lead program include a Tie2 activator for diabetic retinopathy and hypoxia-inducible factor. The company was founded by Joseph H. Garder on November 17, 2011 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, OH.

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