Inhibitex Shares Jumped: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of biotech Inhibitex (NAS: INHX) have jumped 10% this morning on the heels of bullish comments from an analyst, downplaying recent fears.

So what: Last week, Inhibitex shares got crushed when fellow drugmaker Pharmasset (NAS: VRUS) reported safety concerns with its experimental hepatitis C drug, sparking fears for Inhibitex, whose own experimental hepatitis C drug INX-189 shares some similarities with it. This morning, Canaccord Genuity has reiterated its buy rating and thinks Inhibitex's drug is safer.

Now what: Canaccord analyst George Farmer believes the sell-off was an overreaction and recommends aggressively buying the shares, while the company has assigned a price target of $22 to complement its rating. The $22 price target represents more than double Friday's close of $10.45, and even a healthy 91% higher than today's high so far of $11.49. Farmer believes the Street is factoring in higher risks with INX-189, which he believes is presenting an attractive entry point.

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