18 of 21 Analysts Still Think Alnylam Stock Is a Buy. Here's Why They're Right.

There's good news and bad news if you own shares of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ALNY). The good news is that the biotech stock is up around 25% since the end of July. The bad news is that Alnylam is still down 35% year-to-date, even with that rebound. Ouch.

Has Wall Street soured on Alnylam? Not at all. Of the 21 analysts who have rated the stock over the last three months, 18 recommended it as a "buy" or "strong buy." Here's why I think these analysts are right to be bullish about Alnylam.

Image source: Getty Images.

Bully for the Alnylam bulls

One reason why I'm on the same page as most analysts when it comes to Alnylam is the stock's valuation. Alnylam's shares trade at only 19.7 times forward earnings, which is cheap for a growth stock. Speaking of growth, its price-to-earnings-to-growth (PEG) ratio, which is based on analysts' five-year earnings growth projections, is a super-low 0.32.

The market dynamics have also shifted in Alnylam's favor this year. For example, Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) won't have generic competition for its Vyndamax franchise until mid-2031. That means Alnylam's Amvuttro won't potentially face disruption to its growth trajectory, either.

Another positive on this front is that a potential future rival now seems to be out of the picture. AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) and Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: IONS) reported in July 2026 that Wainua (eplontersen) failed to meet its primary endpoint in a late-stage study targeting transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM). This has boosted Alnylam's management's confidence in the prospects for nucresiran, a drug it's evaluating in Phase 3 studies for the treatment of ATTR-CM and hereditary ATTR amyloidosis with polyneuropathy (ATTR-PN).

Alnylam's pipeline is chock-full of other promising programs, too. Most of them are fully owned or have company-led development, although some candidates are out-licensed to partners.

Two things to watch

Could Wall Street analysts and I be wrong about Alnylam? I don't think so, but there are a couple of things to watch that could change the narrative about the stock.

First, Alnylam cut its full-year revenue guidance after management saw that early demand growth for Amvuttra in treating ATTR-CM "benefited significantly from pent-up demand for a new therapy that has since normalized." If the company's results for the third and fourth quarters of 2026 don't show that this demand normalization is truly only a temporary issue, it wouldn't be surprising if some analysts downgraded the stock.

Second, it's possible that AstraZeneca and Ionis could release more details from the Wainua trial that increase concerns about Alnylam's prospects for nucresiran. I don't expect that to happen, but I wouldn't rule it out.

Barring negative developments on these fronts, though, I think Wall Street is right to be bullish about Alnylam. And the consensus 12-month price target upside of roughly 44% is attainable, in my view.

Keith Speights has positions in Pfizer. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca Plc, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, and Pfizer. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.