Aardvark Therapeutics price target lowered to $45 from $50 at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald lowered the firm’s price target on Aardvark Therapeutics (AARD) to $45 from $50 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. Aardvark voluntarily paused the Phase 3 HERO study of ARD-101 in Prader-Willi syndrome after reversible ECG changes were observed at supra-therapeutic doses in a healthy volunteer QT study, despite no such findings at the 800 mg BID dose used in HERO, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The ECG effects were not associated with arrhythmias or symptoms, and potential explanations include unexpected systemic absorption or vagal-mediated effects from rapid high-dose initiation, though the root cause remains under investigation, the firm adds.