Robust Early Adoption, Favorable Safety Profile, and Upcoming DTC Campaign Support Buy Rating on VIZZ

Citi analyst Yigal Nochomovitz maintained a Buy rating on LENZ Therapeutics yesterday and set a price target of $52.00.

Yigal Nochomovitz has given his Buy rating due to a combination of factors tied to VIZZ’s early launch performance and growth trajectory. Fourth-quarter 2025 revenues of $1.6M were essentially in line with both his estimates and market consensus, and more than 20,000 paid prescriptions were recorded before any direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising began. The steady month-on-month prescription growth, even through holiday-related disruptions, together with a more than 2.5-fold increase in eye-care professionals writing prescriptions and a rising share of repeat prescribers, points to strengthening adoption and durability of demand. In addition, the observed under-reporting in third-party prescription data suggests that the true underlying utilization may be higher than currently captured.

Nochomovitz also emphasizes the emerging safety profile of VIZZ as a key support for his positive view. The single retinal tear reported to date across roughly 20,000 treated patients over three months is consistent with expected background rates in the general population, indicating no apparent incremental retinal safety risk from the drug. This contrasts with the notably higher retinal adverse event incidence reported with a competing product, reinforcing VIZZ’s potential safety advantage. Combined with the imminent start of a DTC campaign featuring a high-profile spokesperson, which should further accelerate demand, these commercial, adoption, and safety dynamics underpin his Buy rating and the expectation of substantial upside in the share price.

Nochomovitz covers the Healthcare sector, focusing on stocks such as Neurocrine, Zenas BioPharma, Inc., and ACADIA Pharmaceuticals. According to TipRanks, Nochomovitz has an average return of 3.3% and a 39.27% success rate on recommended stocks.