Summary

  • Biotechnology firm Mirati Therapeutics Inc. received rating upgrade from analysts as it released its financial results for Q2 2023.
  • Riley Securities upgraded Mirati to a ‘buy’ rating, while Cowen and Company maintained its ‘outperform’ rating on the stock.
  • During Q2 2023, Mirati reported a total revenue of US$13.69 million and its Krazati medicine drew in a product revenue of US$13.4 million.

Shares of biotechnology firm Mirati Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: MRTX) surged 30% on Wednesday as it released Q2 financial results and structural updates. The oncology company also announced its CEO Charles Baum’s departure from the position.

Mirati is a midsized company that develops therapeutics aimed at addressing genetic and immunological promoters of cancer. The company operates in the US alone and has a market capitalization of around US$2.15 billion.

For the second quarter of 2023, Mirati reported a total revenue of US$13.69 million, as against US$5.36 million for the second quarter of 2022. The company’s cash and cash equivalents for the June 2023 quarter were US$779.43 million.

As per EODHD/Others data, Mirati has a mean recommendation rating of 2.2 on a scale of one to five. Here, one represents a ‘strong buy’ rating and five represents a ‘strong sell' rating.

Image source: ©2023 Kalkine®; Data source: EODHD/Others

A total of 20 analysts have covered the stock, among which five believe MRTX is a ‘strong buy’, eight believe it is a ‘buy’ and six analysts have given it a ‘hold’ rating. Meanwhile, one analyst believes that the stock is ‘sell’ and none of the analysts have given it a ‘strong sell’ rating.

What analysts are saying about Mirati

Analysts upgraded their ratings on Mirati, soon after the company released its Q2 2023 financial results. B. Riley Securities upgraded Mirati to a ‘buy’ rating and JMP Securities upgraded the stock to a ‘market outperform’ rating.

Guggenheim Securities upgraded Mirati to ‘buy’ and Oppenheimer upgraded MRTX to an ‘outperform’ rating. Meanwhile, Cowen and Company retained its ‘outperform’ rating on Mirati.

The consensus mean price target on MRTX is US$54.18 as per data available on EODHD/Others. This is an upside potential of 46.43% on the stock’s closing price on August 9, 2023.

Oppenheimer Securities upgraded its price target on the stock to US$62, which is 67.57% higher than Wednesday’s closing price. Stiefel Nicolaus also increased its price target on the stock to US$83, while retaining its ‘buy’ rating on the stock.

Mirati reports Krazati Q2 sales above consensus view

The company’s Krazati medicine drew in a product revenue of US$13.4 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2023. The oral drug is used to suppress tumor growth through a targeted attack on the mutated KRAS protein.

As per EODHD/Others, TD Cowen stated that Krazati sales were higher than the consensus view of US$10.7 million. The broker also stated that the quarter-on-quarter growth was in accordance with the company’s expectations for a more linear early launch.

During early Wednesday, Mirati sold approximately 10.8 million shares at US$27.80. The sale included 1.1 million pre-funded warrants, which led to the company raising a total of US$ 300 million.

Meanwhile, the company’s former CEO and founder Charles Baum will stay on as an interim chief till the time the company does not find its new CEO.

MRTX stock price; Image Source: MRTX EODHD/Others

MRTX closed at US$37 on August 9, 2023. The stock hit its 52-week high of US$101.3 late last year on November 28, 2022.