JPMorgan Chase has initiated coverage of CRISPR Therapeutics AG (CRSP.US) with an "Overweight" rating, emphasizing the company's unique advantages in the gene editing field through its pipeline potential. Analyst Brian Cheng noted in the report that CRISPR Therapeutics AG deserves renewed investor attention as the company's portfolio approaches multiple key developmental inflection points, setting a target price of $70.
As a Swiss biotechnology company that partners with Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX.US) to commercialize the Casgevy in-vivo gene editing therapy, CRISPR is providing faster market entry pathways through its autoimmune CAR-T candidate drugs, such as CTX112. Brian Cheng specifically highlighted that against the backdrop of the pharmaceutical industry's intense focus on cardiovascular targets, the company's in-vivo technologies based on ANGPTL3 and Lp(a) candidate drugs present highly attractive opportunities for the company's next growth curve.
In this context of heightened pharmaceutical industry attention on cardiovascular targets, these in-vivo technologies provide compelling opportunities for the company's next growth trajectory. JPMorgan further elaborated in the report: "We believe CRISPR has formulated the right strategy and accumulated sufficient resources by balancing between autoimmune cell therapy and in-vivo cardiovascular tracks, allowing it to avoid some of the challenges faced by other gene editing peers."