Analysts for Stifel and Canaccord Genuity raised their price targets for AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) after an analyst day meeting highlighted the significant penetration opportunity in the atrial fibrillation (AF) market.
Rick Wise of Stifel hiked his price target to $32 from $23, while Jason Mills moved his price target to $35 from $27. Shares of AtriCure closed at $27.99 on June 26.
Mr. Wise said three compelling clinician presentations from prominent AtriCure technology adopters underscored the clinical magnitude of the under-treated AF medical condition, the multiple driving factors affecting concomitant surgical penetration, and AtriCure’s potential procedural uptake given the company’s expansive portfolio of AF-oriented products.
Mr. Mills said that while the clip business will represent AtriCure’s main near-term growth driver, updates out of the analyst day “reinforced our belief that longer-term, minimally invasive surgery ablation will join the picture as a potentially robust growth driver.”
Both analysts noted that enrollment in the 153-patient CONVERGE trial should be completed in July or August, with a possible FDA submission in the summer of 2019.
