Compass Therapeutics upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Leerink

Leerink analyst Andrew Berens upgraded Compass Therapeutics (CMPX) to Outperform from Market Perform with a price target of $6, up from $4, following the top line data release for the COMPANION-002 trial evaluating tovecimig in combination with paclitaxel. Into the data release, the firm was concerned that the COMPANION-002 trial had a number of risks that could lead to deterioration in the efficacy of tovecimig’s activity from that seen in the Phase 2 Korean dataset, a trend that was seen previously in the colorectal trial. While the efficacy did erode in COMPANION-002, the control arm also performed worse than anticipated and the trial met the primary endpoint. Importantly, the data clearly demonstrates a drug that is active, adding to the efficacy of paclitaxel alone as exemplified by the contrasting waterfall plots presented during the company presentation.