Ocular Therapeutix initiated with an Outperform at William Blair

William Blair initiated coverage of Ocular Therapeutix (OCUL) with an Outperform rating and fair value of $18 per share. Ocular is a commercial biotech company with its lead clinical asset Axpaxli, a long-acting axitinib hydrogel implant, in Phase III studies for neovascular age-related macular degeneration, with potential expansion into other retinal vascular diseases, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm believes the emerging class of long-acting tyrosine kinase inhibitors have the potential to meaningfully change the treatment paradigm for nAMD, and that Axpaxli has the potential to show best-in-class efficacy and durability.