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Phathom Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:PHAT) added ~8% on Thursday morning after Evercore ISI upgraded the biopharma, citing a potential FDA approval for its initial product candidate, vonoprazan, targeted at gastrointestinal disorders.
“Phathoms’s recent updates suggest a path to FDA approval by YE:23 is looking clearer,” the analyst Umer Raffat wrote, referring to the oral compound for which the company has signed a licensing deal with Japanese pharma giant Takeda (TAK).
The decision contrasts with recent setbacks for Phathom (PHAT) in its plans to expand the label for Vonoprazan, already approved in the U.S. for adults with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection.
Early this year, the company shares plunged after the FDA declined to act on its marketing application for vonoprazan to treat erosive esophagitis ahead of a target action date on January 11, 2023.
Raffat, who upgraded the stock to Outperform from In-line, cited Wednesday’s amendments with the company’s financing partners to argue that Phathom’s (PHAT) cash drawdown expiry dates have also been extended.