Morgan Stanley Initiates Coverage of COMPASS Pathways with Buy Rating

Morgan Stanley analyst Judah Frommer initiated coverage of COMPASS Pathways (CMPS) with a Buy rating and a $10.00 price target. The analyst consensus on CMPS is a Strong Buy with an average price target of $15.10, representing a 239.33% upside. CMPS market cap is $408M and has a P/E ratio of -2.38.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) upgraded Novartis (NYSE:NVS) from Underweight to Equalweight on Friday, raising its price target to $100.00 from $91.00. The investment bank cited Novartis’s improved mid-term growth profile compared to its peer Roche, projecting 4% sales and EBIT growth for Novartis between 2025-2028 versus 3% for Roche. Morgan Stanley highlighted Novartis’s potential for upside surprises from better commercial execution on key growth drivers and a more promising catalyst path in the pharmaceutical sector. The firm expressed confidence in Novartis’s bolt-on M&A strategy focused on mid-size assets supporting its four key therapeutic areas, suggesting this approach is better positioned to address loss of exclusivity (LOE) challenges expected at the turn of the decade. While upgrading Novartis, Morgan Stanley maintained its preference for AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) among European large-cap pharmaceutical companies, citing its growth at a reasonable price and more manageable long-term LOE risk.

Separately, Morgan Stanley analyst Judah Frommer initiated coverage of Compass Pathways (CMPS) with a Buy rating and a $10.00 price target. The analyst consensus on CMPS is a Strong Buy with an average price target of $15.10, representing a 239.33% upside. CMPS market cap is $408M and has a P/E ratio of -2.38. Compass Pathways is dedicated to accelerating patient access to evidence-based innovation in mental health. The company's Phase 3 TRD program is ongoing, with pivotal trials 1 (COMP005) and 2 (COMP006) showing promising results. The lead product candidate, COMP360 psilocybin treatment for treatment-resistant depression (TRD), has published Phase 2 data in The New England Journal of Medicine and reported Phase 2 PTSD positive top-line data in Q2 2024.

References:
[1] https://ng.investing.com/news/analyst-ratings/morgan-stanley-upgrades-novartis-stock-rating-to-equalweight-on-growth-profile-93CH-2051863
[2] https://www.marketscreener.com/news/compass-pathways-investor-presentation-august-2025-ce7c5edfd18ffe24