There's a Lot of Upside For Emerging Gene-Editing Companies

Key Points

• Genomic Editing is an emerging industry with a lot of room for growth.
• These gene-editing companies have notably high upside potential.
• Analysts forecast the entire genome-editing market to grow significantly.

Gene editing may be a relatively new industry, but it already has a lot of promise, especially for savvy biotech investors. Several gene editing companies have notable upsides, meaning that no matter how good or bad they might be doing right now, there is likely much more to come.

After all, many of these biotech companies have only entered the market within the last few years. Accordingly, some analysts forecast the entire genome-editing market to grow at least another 53%--to reach $59.5 billion—before 2028. 

Caribou Biosciences, Inc. is a BUY

Caribou Biosciences, Inc. NASDAQ: CRBU is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company with a focus on cell therapy and treatment options for hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. Their current $6.85 share value is down more than 31% from the 52-week high but sitting a little more comfortably in the bottom 25% of the range. Of course, that means the stock could see a lot of growth down the road. 

Much like other new companies in this field (many of which are on this list), earnings remain negative for CRBU, as it has been since its July 2021 ipo. With that perspective, slipping about 9% to -$1.92 per share may not be as big a hit as it could have been. And it may not matter anyway since the stock has a $32.67 price target. This represents an upside of 376.9%. Analysts seem to agree, giving the stock a BUY rating.  

Precision Biosciences Inc. is a Moderate BUY

With a current share price of $1.22 and a 555.7% upside Precision BioSciences Inc. NASDAQ: DTIL is a penny stock with excellent promise. It appears some investors may already be attuned to its potential as trading volume registered nearly double the 575,212 average at the top of the final week of February 2023. 

It is important to note that Precision Biosciences is currently not generating positive earnings, despite having two distinct Therapeutic and Food segments. That said, earnings are projected to grow from -$1.29 to -$0.84 per share. Also, the current share value is in the bottom 8% of the 52-week range, so it has done better. In fact, the stock’s historical high was $18.20 (December 2020). Still, the $5.00 price target exceeds the current range, so analysts seem to expect growth will come; and when it does, it will not only be quick but should get better over time.

Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc. is a Moderate Buy

The current share value of $3.07 may be relatively high for Sangamo Therapteutics, Inc. NASDAQ: SGMO, but the stock is down nearly 50% since last year. It also remains in the bottom 10% of the range.  This may not seem like the stock is doing very well, but the $11 price target represents an upside of 258.3%. Along with its Moderate Buy rating, the upside suggests analysts believe the clinical-stage biotech firm may be nearing an upswing.   

Earnings per share remain in negative territory but have been mostly flat since its April 2019 ipo.  After sinking from $0.04 in its first quarter (Q4 2019)–and despite a -$0.01 EPS in Q3 2020–earnings have consistently come in around -$0.30. Currently, earnings are at -$0.37, the stock has not managed a positive quarter since. Unfortunately, earnings are projected to tumble again. The silver lining is that SGMO consistently beats analyst earnings projections, and with a three-prong R&D approach, their opportunity should be plentiful. 

Cellectis S.A. is a HOLD

The only stock on this list with a HOLD rating, Cellectis S.A. NASDAQ: CLLS, is also waiting for a period of positive earnings. However, unlike the other stocks on this list, earnings are projected to grow by as much as 60% to -$1.08. And with separate Therapeutics and Plant segments, they are certainly diversified enough to do so. 

Indeed, the $9.80 price target represents another astonishing upside of 335.6% over the current $2.20 price. Of course, the stock remains down more than 31% over the last 12 months, despite bouncing back more than 9% since the beginning of the year. Very near the 52-week range bottom, trading activity was relatively high (again, in the final week of February). This might help explain the HOLD rating despite having similar metrics as the previously mentioned stocks.