CRSP

What is CRISPR Therapeutics and what do they do?

Gene editing was the stuff of science fiction not that long ago. But that's exactly the field that CRISPR Therapeutics spearheads nowadays. 

The company was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland. They research means by which genomic DNA can be disrupted, deleted, corrected and inserted “to treat genetically-defined diseases and to engineer advanced cellular therapies” using CRISPR/Cas9-based therapeutics. Yes, of course it's complicated.

CRISPR stands for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, while Cas9 means CRISPR-associated protein 9. Suffice to say the technology allows for the precise alteration of specific sequences of genomic DNA. 

CRISPR Therapeutics’ most advanced programs currently target hemoglobinopathies including beta thalassemia and sickle cell disease. The company is also progressing a variety of cell therapy programs to treat haematological and solid tumour cancers.

Company Co-founder Dr. Emmanuelle Charpentier co-invented CRISPR/Cas9 with biochemist and geneticist Jennifer Doudna in 2011. They were both awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020.

Is CRISPR Therapeutics profitable?

Since going public in 2016, CRISPR Therapeutics’ earnings have been inconsistent. 

The company has achieved a positive net income for only two of the last eight financial years FY2019 with US$67m and FY2021 with US$378m. Earnings for all other years were negative.

CRISPR Therapeutics currently “have no products approved for commercial sale and have not generated any revenue from product sales.”

What kind of stock is CRSP?

CRSP is a biotechnology stock. The company specialises in gene editing and developing “transformative gene-based medicines for serious human diseases.”

Is CRISPR Therapeutics stock a buy?

Gene editing may or may not define the future of healthcare. Because of this, many investors see CRSP as a speculative play.

Investor sentiment has been negative for the past 15 months. The CRSP stock price plunged over 70% from its January 2021 high of over US$199 down to a low of US$50.54 in March 2022.

One of the biggest reasons for the drop is the company’s rising research and development costs. Another may be due to the company’s admission that they “have a history of recurring losses and expect to continue to incur losses for the foreseeable future.”

Does CRSP stock have a short interest?

Yes. As of 28 February 2022, CRISPR Therapeutics’ short interest totals 17.19% of all CRSP shares. This is up 4.93% from the previous month’s short interest.

When does CRSP report earnings?

CRISPR Therapeutics' most recent annual report was filed on 15 Feb 2022.

Since 2019, the company’s quarterly earnings have usually been reported in April, July and October or November.

Who owns the most CRSP stock?

Ark Investment Management is CRISPR Therapeutics biggest owner by far. It holds 11.79% of all CRSP stock.

CRSP’s other largest shareholders are institutional and include Nikko Asset Management (5.6%), Capital Research and Management Company (5.36%), SR One Capital Management (4.18%) and New Enterprise Associates (2.06%)

Co-founder Dr. Rodger Novak owns 0.74% of CRSP.