By Sam Boughedda
Investing.com — Aridis Pharmaceuticals Inc 's (NASDAQ:ARDS) monoclonal antibody cocktail treatment is potentially first-in-class, H.C. Wainwright analyst Vernon Bernardino told investors Wednesday.
Last week Aridis announced that the drug, AR-701, is broadly reactive against Omicron and other Covid-19 variants, SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus), and the common cold, which is a type of human coronavirus.
According to TheFly, Bernardino, who reiterated a buy rating and $19 price target on Aridis shares, said the cocktail "binds to the S2 spike protein subunit, which mediates viral cell membrane fusion in SARS-CoV-2 variants and also binds to the omicron variant with no loss in affinity compared to the original Wuhan strain."
The analyst is now looking for the initiation of phase 1 testing as a positive for Aridis Pharmaceuticals' share price next year.
H.C. Wainwright's positive comments on Aridis follow similar comments from Cantor Fitzgerald, which last week said Aridis' pipeline is "underappreciated."
Despite the bullish commentary on the stock, it is down over 6.8% Wednesday, to $2.04.