NEW YORK—Shares of drug maker ViroPharma rose Monday after a Thomas Weisel Partners analyst said that the company "remains well-positioned for long-term growth."
Shares of the Exton, Pa., company rose 29 cents, or 3.3 percent, to $9.03.
Thomas Weisel analyst Stephen Willey said Monday that a recent meeting with senior ViroPharma management, including Chief Executive Officer Clayton Fletcher, "highlighted emerging opportunities for the business."
Willey said that the company's only marketed product, the antibiotic Vancocin, is set for growth as the likelihood of a generic version coming on the market this year "is growing increasingly thin."
He added that ViroPharma's management is leveraging "the company's expertise in gastroenterology and transplant medicine." He also said that top-line data for the company's cytomegalovirus candidate, Camvia, is on schedule for an early 2009 release.
"Based on previous Phase II data and conversations with physicians, we believe Camvia will be a game-changer in the treatment of cytomegalovirus (CMV) in transplant patients," Willey wrote. "We believe management's $400-500 million estimate for peak Camvia sales remains highly conservative."
He tempered his optimism by saying that ViroPharma lacks near-term catalysts and concerns over generic Vancocin could keep shares stagnant in the short term.
Willey has a "Market Weight" rating on ViroPharma shares and a $10 price target.
