Leerink Partners Downgrades BioNTech (BNTX) to Market Perform

Leerink Partners analyst Daina Graybosch downgraded BioNTech (NASDAQ: BNTX) from Outperform to Market Perform with a price target of $113.00.

The analyst comments "We are downgrading BioNTech (BNTX) to Market Perform (MP) following a successful 24% rally to $113 from December lows of $92 (vs. 4% XBI appreciation), which brings the stock in line with our updated $113 price target and DCF valuation. While we remain fundamentally positive on the company’s potential for long-term differentiation— specifically pumitamig (VEGFA/PD-L1 bispecific) as a backbone for BioNTech and partner, BMY’s (OP, Risinger) ADC and IO portfolios—we do not anticipate meaningful data readouts that confirm the potential of these combinations until 2027 or later. In the next 12-to-18-month period, we believe BNTX will trade in sympathy with competitor VEGFA/PD-(L)1disclosures that we anticipate will be negative to neutral in outcome. Furthermore, we now see little probability for a surprise upside from BioNTech’s cancer vaccines, given their personalized cancer vaccine (autogene cevumeran) passed the futility boundary in the Phase 2 study in adjuvant CRC. Though we are excited about gotistobart, BioNTech’s next-generation CTLA-4 antagonist and anticipate a success in the Phase 3 PRESERVE-003 study mid-2026, the current development outlook for gotistobart is too narrow for this one win to meaningfully sustain stock appreciation, in our view. As the company’s $20.3B (€17.2 B) cash position begins to decline as the company invests in the large oncology portfolio, we prefer to move to the sidelines until more meaningful clinical readouts begin in 2027."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on BioNTech click here. For more ratings news on BioNTech click here.

Shares of BioNTech closed at $113.75 yesterday.

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