William Blair downgrades Sarepta on limited near-term upside

William Blair downgraded Sarepta (SRPT) to Market Perform from Outperform without a price target The firm continues to think that there will be “strong interest” among commercial ambulatory patients in Elevidys and that a higher share price is therefore justified. However, at this time, the reduction in peak revenue opportunity following second case of fatal acute liver failure due to Elevidys treatment and “growing number of uncertain variables will be a deterrent for investors,” the analyst tells investors in a research note. Blair says one key factor leading to investor hesitancy is the lack of clarity over how many additional non-ambulatory patients have been treated and are still within the time frame to potentially develop acute liver failure. This creates “uncertainty over the risk of another fatality in the near term,” the firm contends. It sees limited near-term upside in the shares.