Clinical-stage biopharma Immunomedics (Nasdaq:IMMU) is a heavyweight player soaring in the worldwide antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) market. In other words, IMMU specializes in cancer therapies; and it’s been a standout year for investors.

Notably, IMMU’s lead investigational ADC is IMMU-132 (sacituzumab govitecan), designed for heavily pre-treated patients with ER+ and HER2-metastatic breast cancer.

It’s been a year of rapid-fire growth for IMMU. The stock has rocketed 51% in 2018 alone; and 103% in year-over-year growth. Momentum doesn’t seem to be trailing for the mid-cap company either. After all, shares were rising almost 6% on Monday, and continue to jump another 2% Tuesday morning.

What’s got bulls all riled up on Immunomedics? Ever since the drug maker posted its fourth fiscal print for 2018, shares have surged close to 9%.

Here, we turn to TipRanks’ data to get a better sense of the bigger picture- and determine if the indicators are pointing to a compelling biotech investment prospect.

A Closer Look at the Bullish Picture 

First, we can see that based on over 58,000 best-performing investor portfolios analyzed by TipRanks, sentiment here is bullish. In the last 30 days, top investors have boosted portfolios by 0.4%.

Next, we can see blogger sentiment is upbeat on Immunomedics’ market opportunity. Compared to other names in the Healthcare sector, bloggers are more positive. In fact, one blogger picked IMMU as one of the top 10 best stocks of 2017.

Looking at the last three months, we can see that insiders have dialed up IMMU shares- a monster upturn worth over $18 million.

What is ‘smart money’ doing? Five-star hedge fund manager Peter Kolchinsky of RA Capital Management (Profile & Recommendations) initiated a new stake in IMMU in the latest quarter worth $73.85 million. The biotech player takes a roughly 5% of Kolchinsky’s portfolio. Notably, Kolchinsky is ranked top #14 among over 200 hedge funds we track on TipRanks.

IMMU’s Leadership at the Helm of ‘Transformation’

Worldwide pharma leader Michael Pehl joined the IMMU team last December as President and CEO. For context, Pehl had served for 11 years prior for biotech giant Celgene (Nasdaq:CELG) as President of Hematology and Oncology. Additionally, Pehl had previously served as Celgene’s Senior Vice President of Global Marketing, head of Hematology Europe, and was the first General Manager of Celgene in Germany. Bottom line, Pehl brought with him to IMMU a wealth of experience in the launch of a slew of hematology and oncology drugs- from Revlimid, Pomalyst, and Abraxane.

IMMU chairman Behzad Aghazadeh had had said he cared about choosing “the right leader to guide the next phase in the transformation of Immunomedics.” Aghazadeh focused on choosing “a best-in-class talent with a proven ability to successfully navigate the approval and commercialization of groundbreaking drugs in the oncology space, which we are confident IMMU-132 and other products in our pipeline will be.”

What enticed a global pharma leader of the likes of Pehl over to IMMU’s team? Pehl sees great potential in IMMU’s antibody-drug conjugates, as the pipeline offers high odds to better “the lives of countless patients with significant unmet needs.” As far as Pehl was concerned when he stepped into the role, “Now, more than ever, this is an absolute priority for me in my career.”

One Bull Makes a Case for Breakthrough Designation

Wells Fargo’s Jim Birchenough (Profile & Recommendations) is a bull that in his last research note got more bullish on IMMU’s opportunity. Even back in May, the analyst was already betting on a breakthrough designation for IMMU-132 in hormone-receptor breast cancer. The analyst forecasted a prospective fast-to-market path- for an indication soaring as much as three times larger than the advanced indication of triple negative breast cancer.

In his most recent report, Birchenough was encouraged to see updated data at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting. Specifically, the analyst underscored new data for IMMU-132, encouraged to see a 31% response rate with median response duration of 7.4 months. Why is this good? The data further backs the analyst’s bet on a breakthrough designation for IMMU-132; along with a fast-track approval filing in triple negative breast cancer.

Birchenough sees the stock as undervalued compared to a massive collective opportunity: in triple-negative breast cancer, ER+ breast cancer, urothelial cancer, and other human trophoblast-cell-surface antigen (TROP2+) cancers.

As such, the analyst reiterated an Outperform rating on IMMU stock while lifting the price target from $25 to $31 (29% upside potential).

The Bullish Chorus Is In: IMMU-132 is ‘Undervalued’

Cowen’s Phil Nadeau (Profile & Recommendations) just came out with another note praising IMMU-132’s market opportunity, a drug he sees tracking for early 2019 approval. A launch awaits around the corner in triple metastatic negative breast cancer. The FDA’s review in this indication is “underway,” as IMMU soon meets its PDUFA date with destiny come January 18.

“Development in other indications continues, with a pivotal Ph. II in mUC initiated, and programs in ER+ BC and NSCLC soon to be defined. We continue to view shares as undervalued for sacituzumab’s potential,” writes Nadeau.

The analyst continues, “Management indicated that it is preparing for the launch and is building a commercial team… The internal launch team is in place, a distribution strategy has been finalized, and a specialty pharmacy and distributor network is being built. Thus, Immunomedics is confident that it will be prepared to launch product within days, even should approval come before the PDUFA.”

The IMMU team is optimistic to gain “clarity” on its “strategy” beyond the U.S. by the close of this year, highlights Nadeau. Probability soars high for IMMU-132 to gain a green light from the FDA in January and be “successfully developed worldwide in mTNBC.” The analyst’s prediction: this indication could translate to close to $1 billion in global sales for Immunomedics come 2025.

All Eyes on January PDUFA

Madhu Kumar of FBR (Profile & Recommendations) likewise sees the lead asset’s PDUFA date as a “key near-term catalyst” for the drug maker. One bullish point stands clear: Kumar continues to name IMMU as his “Alpha Generator Pick.”

On the fresh heels of earnings and the company’s corporate update, the analyst maintains a Buy rating on IMMU stock while boosting the price target from $53 to $55. In other words, Kumar forecasts a monster almost 136% in return potential for IMMU stock.

Glancing ahead, Immunomedics is set to participate at the B. Riley FBR’s Annual Healthcare Investor Conference on September 4.

Consensus Cheers: Robust Upside Potential Ahead

The ’Strong Buy’ stock has racked up a unanimous consensus of bullish best-performing analysts in three months. Consensus expectations among these four bulls round out to a $36.50 12-month average price target. Wall Street spotlights close to 56% more upside potential in store for this biotech pick.

See IMMU Price Target and Analyst Rating Details.