UPDATE: Leerink Swann Downgrades Cellular Dynamics International on Good Story, But Lacking Visibility

In a report published Thursday, Leerink Swann analyst Dan Leonard downgraded the rating on Cellular Dynamics International (NASDAQ: ICEL) from Outperform to Market Perform, but reiterated the $15.00 price target.

In the report, Leerink Swann noted, “We've reduced our forward revenue estimates for ICEL following a 3Q top-line result that fell slightly short of our forecast. We continue to believe ICEL's induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) will be increasingly adopted by biopharmaceutical companies for compound screening and toxicity testing; however, absent visibility on contract wins in stem cell banking (ex. CIRM) and therapeutic partnerships, which comprise ~17.5% of our new 2014 revenue forecast (down from 28% previously), we believe Street numbers have more downside than upside. Thus, we're downgrading ICEL's stock to Market Perform from Outperform, and maintaining our price target of $15.”

Cellular Dynamics International closed on Wednesday at $17.23.