J.P. Morgan Downgrading BioMimetic Therapeutics

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. is downgrading shares of BioMimetic Therapeutics BMTI to Neutral from Overweight, and is cutting the price target to $5. In a note to clients, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. writes, "We are lowering our rating on BMTI from Overweight to Neutral on the heels of this week's Spine Journal and what we see as a diminished likelihood of Augment approval in the coming 6-12 months. We think the InFuse articles, which call out trial investigators on a variety of issues including: (1) under-reporting of adverse events; (2) poor trial designs; and (3) surgeon financial conflicts of interest, will make the FDA even more cautious in approving Augment. Six months ago it might have been a different story, but we fear BMTI ends up suffering from quite simply, bad timing." Shares of BMTI lost 10 cents yesterday to close at $5.12.