Merus price target raised to $92 from $70 at BofA

BofA raised the firm’s price target on Merus (MRUS) to $92 from $70 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares after the company reported 12-month landmark objective survival of 79% in its full phase 2 cohort for petosemtamab plus pembrolizumab. This OS rate compares favorably to the historical 50%-59% benchmark for pembro monotherapy in first-line head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and is also significantly higher than the 50%-60% range the firm’s doctor checks had indicated would be “good data,” the analyst tells investors. The firm thinks the data sets the “peto’+pembro” combination up to be “the best-in-class treatment option for this patient population,” the analyst added.