Leap Therapeutics price target lowered to $3 from $15 at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler lowered the firm’s price target on Leap Therapeutics (LPTX) to $3 from $15 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm notes the company announced initial data from DeFianCe Part B and DisTinGuish Part C evaluating sirexatamab in 2L CRC and 1L G/GEJ, respectively. Within CRC, sirexatamab demonstrated clear and consistent response rate benefits. While that benefit was modest in the primary populations and seems unlikely to show PFS benefit, there were more compelling signals in subgroups that Piper thinks could translate to benefits on other efficacy measures and provide a potential path forward – patients with the highest levels of DKK1 expression, as well as those with no prior anti-VEGF. The firm sees this as a favorable start, but much still to be determined – does the full efficacy profile support moving forward in a targeted population and if so how would that development be funded.