BioNTech’s promising cancer treatments pipeline could lead to strong gains ahead, according to Citi. The bank initiated the biotech stock with a buy rating. Its price target of $145 implies shares can rally 44.5% from Wednesday’s close. Although BioNTech’s revenue has pulled back since Covid-19 vaccine sales peaked at around $19 billion in 2021, analyst Geoff Meacham thinks there’s more growth opportunities for the company. “We are … encouraged by COVID vaccination rates that are projected to stabilize … and, more exciting to us, a packed oncology pipeline with three distinct, differentiated modalities that have several mid/late-stage assets with regularly cadenced data readouts beginning in 2025 across its 1) immunomodulators, 2) targeted therapies, inclusive of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and 3) mRNA cancer immunotherapies,” Meacham said. “Immunomodulators represent the company’s forays into the immuno-oncology (IO) space, with BNT327 … the lead asset among many others,” he added, touting encouraging phase 2 trial data for BNT327. BNTX YTD mountain BNTX year to date BioNTech shares have been under pressure this year, losing more than 11%. However, they gained 1% on the back of Meacham’s upgrade. The analyst also said BioNTech’s diverse treatment portfolio “can help dampen or deflect healthcare policy-driven headline volatility.” Most analysts are bullish on BionNTech. LSEG data shows that 16 if 21 analysts covering the stock rate it as a buy or strong buy, while the average analyst price target points to 38% upside.