Bluebird Bio shares soared 24% in premarket trade Monday, after Goldman Sachs raised its price target for the stock to $309 from $186, on strong gene/cell therapy pipeline updates at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting. Bluebird’s CAR T bb2121 “looks to have a disruptive impact on the multiple myeloma (MM) treatment paradigm,” Goldman analysts led by Salveen Richter wrote in a note, based on the efficacy and safety profile, which supports development of this “potentially curative approach.” Bluebird may also be on the path to address severe sickle cell disease, it said. Goldman views the company as an attractive takeover candidate, “given its innovative and leading lentiviral-based gene therapy and CAR-T cell platforms backed by positive proof of concept data, which targets large blood disorders beta-thalassemia and sickle cell disease and multiple myeloma,” said the note. Shares have gained 177% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 18%.
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