Oscient Pharmaceuticals downgraded to "neutral weight" - update

10/04/05 - Prudential Financial

NEW YORK, October 4 (newratings.com) - Analyst Jason Zhang of Prudential Financial downgrades Oscient Pharmaceuticals (OSCI) from "overweight" to "neutral weight," while reducing his estimates for the company. The target price has been reduced from $5 to $3.

In a research note published this morning, the analyst mentions that the company announced on Tuesday that it would promote FACTIVE itself, indicating its inability to find a partner to co-promote the drug. The markets were expecting Oscient Pharmaceuticals to find a partner for FACTIVE in order to penetrate the antibiotic market further, the analyst says. The company has also filed an equity shelf registration statement with the SEC for $100 million to meet the expenses to promote FACTIVE, Prudential Financial adds. The EPS estimates for 2005 and 2006 have been reduced from -$1.36 to -$1.38 and from -$1.16 to -$1.31, respectively.