CRISPR rises as investors raise hopes on blood disorder therapy

Crispr Therapeutics AG

07/11/2023 11:50

** U.S.-listed shares of Swiss-based gene editing company
CRISPR Therapeutics AG  CRSP.O  rise 1.2% to $52.2 premarket 
    ** Multiple brokerages say investor focus for CRSP remains
on regulatory action on co's experimental gene therapy being
developed for a type of blood disorder called sickle cell
disease 
    ** CRSP is developing the therapy, exa-cel, with partner
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc  VRTX.O  as a potential one-time
treatment, which would be the first therapy to use the
Nobel-winning CRISPR gene-editing technology if approved
    ** Exa-cel approval is "highly likely", but think that
uptake will be "slow" given the therapy might be "initially
restricted to severe patients, 60% of the earnings go to VRTX,
infrastructure may not be in place, patients could lose
fertility," RBC capital Markets analyst Luca Issi wrote in a
note 
    ** Co says has cash, cash equivalents, and marketable
securities of $1.74 bln as of Sept. 30, 2023
    ** Up to last close, U.S.-listed shares of stock up ~27% YTD

 (Reporting by Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru)
 ((Mariam.ESunny@thomsonreuters.com;))