Analysts from Lucid Capital, H.C. Wainwright, and B. Riley Securities have all repeated ‘Buy’ ratings on OKYO Pharma Ltd (NASDAQ:OKYO), highlighting the company’s promising urcosimod program and its potential to address an unmet need in neuropathic corneal pain (NCP).
The positive sentiment follows a successful Type C meeting with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which confirmed the company’s proposed trial design, primary endpoint, and overall regulatory approach.
Lucid Capital emphasized that the FDA agreed the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) pain score at Week 12 is a clinically meaningful endpoint, noting that a ≥2-point improvement represents a meaningful treatment benefit. The agency also supported the Ocular Pain Assessment Survey (OPAS) as a quality-of-life measure and raised no material concerns regarding the company’s CMC strategy, reducing execution risk for the pivotal trial.
The firm has a $13 price target on OKYO, implying significant upside from current levels of about $1.80.
H.C. Wainwright analysts pointed to mechanistic data from the Phase 2 trial, noting that corneal imaging analyses revealed favorable changes in nerve structure in patients receiving 0.05% urcosimod, which were not observed in placebo-treated patients. These findings, combined with statistically significant pain reduction, suggest that targeting the chemerin receptor pathway could be a viable therapeutic approach for NCP, a condition with no FDA-approved treatments.
The firm set a $7 price target based on an estimated $300 million valuation of urcosimod.
B. Riley Securities highlighted the company's recent CEO transition, noting that Robert Dempsey’s experience launching ophthalmology blockbusters such as Xiidra and Restasis positions OKYO to efficiently advance urcosimod.
The firm also highlighted that the FDA’s guidance allowing strong Phase 2b results to potentially serve as registration-quality data, which could accelerate the path to approval and reduce capital requirements.
B. Riley assigned a $5 price target, viewing the stock as underappreciated ahead of topline Phase 2b results expected by year-end 2026.
“Currently at an enterprise value of $80, we view OKYO's urcosimod as remaining underappreciated by the Street, but anticipate Phase 2 data at ARVO could provide greater color on potential benefit,” they wrote. “Coupled with the recent CEO transition coming ahead of Phase 2 trial getting underway in 1Q 2026 leading to year-end 2026 topline readout, we believe the stage is set for an impactful 2026.”
OKYO Pharma plans to begin a 120-patient, multiple ascending dose Phase 2b trial in 1Q 2026, evaluating 0.025% and 0.05% urcosimod versus placebo over 12 weeks.
The analysts agree that, with regulatory alignment and encouraging early clinical data, urcosimod could offer a meaningful treatment option in a market currently without FDA-approved therapies for NCP.