** Shares of drug developer Schrodinger SDGR.O up about 1% at $18.24

** BofA upgrades stock to "buy" from "neutral"

** Brokerage sees a more favorable backdrop for the pharma sector and R&D spending

** Recent quarterly results underscore resilience despite market noise, with Software and Drug Discovery revenues consistently topping Wall Street expectations

** Remains positive on R&D rebound, believes it could accelerate adoption of SDGR's platform, even as near-term pharma budget pressures have weighed on Software segment growth

** 3 of 9 brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher, 4 "hold", 2 brokerages rate the stock "sell" or higher; median PT is $28 - data compiled by LSEG

** As of last close, stock down ~6% YTD

(Reporting by Koyena Das from Bengaluru)

((Koyena.das@thomsonreuters.com))