Both stocks made their public trading debuts in September
Cowen initiated coverage on Exagen Inc (NASDAQ:XGN) with an "outperform" rating and $17 price target, representing expected upside of 34.8% to Friday's close at $12.61. The brokerage firm said XGN stock is undervalued, and that the diagnostics company's autoimmune test for systemic lupus erythematosus, Avise CTD, works better than similar tests. William Blair also chimed in on XGN shares, starting coverage with an "outperform" rating.
Nevertheless, the stock is down 0.8% at $12.50, headed for its fifth straight daily loss. It's been a steady decline for the Nasdaq newcomer, which opened at $16.80 on Sept. 19 -- its first day of trading -- well above its initial public offering (IPO) price of $14 per share. The shares hit their record high of $19.50 the next day, before sliding all the way down to an all-time low of $11.54 on Friday.
IGM Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ:IGMS) also went public last month, opening at $18.31 in its Sept. 18 trading debut -- above its IPO price of $16 per share. The shares have been chopping below the $18 level in recent weeks, currently home to their recently formed 10-day moving average.
Today, IGMS stock is attempting its first close north of this trendline, up 4% at $17.94, after Jefferies and Stifel each initiated coverage with a "buy" rating. Plus, the former set its price target at $25, while the latter's target price sits all the way up at $32, with both brokerage firms waxing optimistic over the company's IgM-based antibody platform.