3 Highlights From A Spark Therapeutics Fireside Chat

Analysts at Jefferies hosted a fireside chat-themed conversation with Spark Therapeutics Inc ONCE to discuss the company's successes from Thursday's FDA panel.

Analyst Michael Yee maintains a Buy rating on Spark's stock with an unchanged $95 price target and noted three main takeaways from the chat with management.

First, Spark will likely proceed with just three to five centers when its therapy is launched and ultimately expand to eight to 10 centers, Yee said. Management believes there many LCA patients that are eligible for immediate treatment and the analyst's estimates pegs this market as being in the "hundreds." Over the longer-term, the ultimate market for Spark's therapy could move into the "thousands."

See Also: Spark Therapeutics: Inside The Dramatic FDA AdCom Meeting

Second, insurance payers are willing to pay a lump sum payment for Luxturna since it's used to treat an ultra-rare disease population, the analyst said. The company is also having "early and positive discussions" with payers on the economic value of its Hemophilia therapies.

Finally, Spark's management indicated that new hemophilia data expected to be released between Dec. 9 and 12 for SPK-8011 for Factor VIII. The company expects to have data for at least five to seven patients depending on dosing schedule. The Hem B program is also in the process of being transferred to Pfizer Inc. PFE who will begin the pivotal phase 3 program and run a global study to support global registrations.