Piper Jaffray Upgrades Supernus Pharmaceutical On Possible Label Expansion For Seizure Drug

Positive survey results have helped push Supernus Pharmaceutical Inc (NASDAQ: SUPN) up in Thursday trading and fueled an upgrade from Piper Jaffray.

The survey conducted by Piper Jaffray suggests that "a better-tolerated, once-daily sodium channel blocker like Oxtellar XR would be well-received in this treatment setting," senior research analyst David Amsellem said in a note. 

Piper Jaffray upgraded Supernus Pharmaceutical from Neutral to Overweight and raised its price target from $30 to $44 on Wednesday. 

Highlights From The Research Report

• Label expansion to treat bipolar disorder could potentially double Oxtellar XR's sales potential, Amsellem said, adding that with Supernus Pharmaceuticals possibly moving soon into pivotal studies based on their phase two results, a label expansion could occur by the end of 2020. This penetration could generate between $85 and $110 million in sales potential, according to Piper Jaffray estimates. 
• The survey suggested a sizable amount of doctors would favor using Oxtellar ER. “Out of the 28 respondents, 43 percent noted that they would switch at least a slight majority of their patients to Oxtellar XR away from IR oxcarbazepine if the product were to gain approval in this setting," Amsellem said; 40 percent said they would prescribe the drug more frequently.

At time of publication, shares of Supernus were up 3.06 percent at $38.75.

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