By Sam Boughedda
Investing.com — Shares of Belgian pharmaceutical research company Galapagos NV ADR (NASDAQ:GLPG) are up more than 21% a day after the company appointed its new CEO.
Citi analysts upgraded the stock on Thursday morning.
The drug maker announced the appointment of Paul Stoffels as CEO, effective April 1. Stoffel was previously the chief scientific officer of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ). Last year, he retired but will take over at the troubled Belgian firm when Galapagos' CEO and co-founder Onno van de Stolpe steps into retirement.
Galapagos has faced several difficulties recently, one of which is a $5 billion alliance with Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) not working out.
Citi analyst Peter Verdult upgraded the stock to buy from neutral. Verdult said the company's shares offer a more attractive risk/reward.
The analyst also pointed to the appointment of Stoffel and deployment opportunities for the company's 5 billion euros cash pile. As a result, the analyst also put a "positive catalyst watch" on the shares.
On Wednesday, Greenlight Capital revealed new long positions in Galapagos in its quarterly letter.