Hinge Health sees wave of bullish ratings as IPO banks start coverage

Research analysts at investment banks that worked on Hinge Health's HNGE.N May IPO overwhelmingly bullish after quiet period ends

Shares of San Francisco-based telehealth startup, which provides physical therapy services, closed at $34.85 on Fri, 9% above their $32 IPO price

HNGE stock up 4% at $36.25 in very thin premarket trading

Morgan Stanley, one of the IPO's lead bookrunners, initiates at 'overweight' saying HNGE is a "category leader in virtual musculoskeletal care with a highly scalable, differentiated AI-driven platform" and is selling into a $27 bln "serviceable available market" (SAM)

Needham initiates at 'buy' saying MSK (musculoskeletal) category represents a "massive opportunity" in the U.S. as 40% of Americans have an MSK issue but only 9% currently receive treatment

KeyBanc starts at 'overweight' pointing to key catalysts for the stock being co's "unique and proprietary technology" allowing seamless user experience, strong health plan network, growth supported by shift to utilitization-based pricing model, and margin expansion opportunities to approach longer-term goal of ~25% sooner than expected

CURRENT COVERAGE ACCORDING TO LSEG DATA (sorted by PT, descending order):