Wedbush cuts Sage to neutral, questions Biogen's future funding of zuranolone
Waldemarus
Wedbush has downgraded Sage Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SAGE) to neutral following the FDA's decision to approve its drug zuranolone for the treatment of post-partum depression but not major depressive disorder, or MDD.
The investment bank said it hadn't anticipated the FDA move and questioned whether partner Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) would fund additional studies to help get the drug approved for MDD. Wedbush added that investing additional capital in the product would appear to be at odds with Biogen's goal of lowering its pipeline risk profile.
Wedbush also questioned zuranolone's potential pricing, given that the market for post-partum depression is far smaller than that for MDD.
The bank lowered its price target for Sage to $22 from $51.
On Friday, Sage disclosed that the FDA had approved zuranolone for the treatment of post-partum depression, but not for MDD, a much larger market.

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