Helus Pharma: That escalated quickly...feedback on our Helus initiation and why we view Friday's selloff as a buying opportunity

This report responds to investor feedback after Barclays initiated coverage on Helus Pharma (HELP.US) on September 18, 2026 with an Overweight rating and a $35 price target. We clarify that the widely-cited line stating a placebo-adjusted MADRS delta of at least 7-8 points in Phase 3 would be considered solid was an illustrative extrapolation of the Phase 2 HLP003 result, applying the roughly 42-47% attenuation seen in selected Phase 2-to-Phase 3 precedents; it was neither our base-case expectation nor a required outcome for our $35 target. APPROACH is an adjunctive trial with no prospective antidepressant lead-in and an inactive placebo, and its control-arm response could land anywhere between the adjunctive and psychedelic precedents, supporting a range of outcomes rather than a single number, from above 3 points (statistically positive) to 10 points or more. Topline data are expected in 4Q26, with EMBRACE reading out later. With Friday's selloff taking the shares to $12.37, upside t