4 Top Jefferies Growth Stocks to Buy With Big Upside Potential

Investing

Published: March 14, 2016 8:35 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 11:59 am

After the massive rally on Friday, it will be interesting to see how the markets trade this week. Some anecdotal Wall Street data indicate that money managers and traders are still very cautious, and the utility and telecom sectors still lead the S&P 500 by a wide margin. One thing is for sure, and Friday’s strength backs up this notion, there is a lot of cash on the sidelines and a lot of short pressure still leaning on stocks.

A new research report from Jefferies focuses on a set of growth stocks for this week that have big upside. While they may be a touch aggressive for some growth investors, those with a higher risk tolerance may have a big interest. We selected four with some serious upside potential.

Anacor Pharmaceuticals

This biopharmaceutical company has been hit hard as upheavals in the specialty pharmaceutical area have proved damaging to all. Anacor Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ANAC) is focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel small-molecule therapeutics derived from its boron chemistry platform. Anacor’s first approved drug, Kerydin (tavaborole) topical solution, 5%, is an oxaborole antifungal approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July 2014 for the topical treatment of onychomycosis of the toenails.

In July 2014, Anacor entered into an exclusive agreement with Sandoz, a Novartis company, pursuant to which PharmaDerm, the branded dermatology division of Sandoz, distributes and commercializes Kerydin in the United States.

Jefferies notes that the company reported disappointing earnings last week as the Kerydin numbers came in lower than expected, but the firm also notes that Crisaborole, an investigational non-steroidal topical PDE-4 inhibitor for the potential treatment of mild-to-moderate atopic dermatitis and psoriasis, is still the big story at the company, with FDA approval expected in 2017.

The Jefferies analysts recently attended the American Academy of Dermatology conference. They mentioned that there was a buzz for various new AD therapies, including Crisaborole. They feel that Crisaborole peak sales will be $1 billion or more, and that was reinforced based on their discussions and the new data.

The Jefferies price target for the stock is $105, and the Thomson/First Call consensus price target is $143.33. The stock closed Friday at $63.55.