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The biotech firm CRISPR Therapeutics is one of Piper Sandler analyst Ted Tenthoffs top picks for 2020, he reaffirmed in a note out Monday.

CRISPR Therapeutics stock (ticker: CRSP) was up 0.5% Monday morning after rising as much as 3.9% in pre-market trading. Shares fell 2.6% on Friday. CRISPR Therapeutics, which is developing therapeutic genome-editing technology, announced last Thursday that it would build a new manufacturing facility in Massachusetts to produce its experimental cell therapies.

In his Monday note, Tenthoff wrote that the company is moving forward with its CRISPR-based allogenic CAR-T cell therapies, a set of experimental cancer treatments, with data expected by the end of the year.

CRISPR [Therapeutics] remains a top pick for 2020, Tenthoff wrote. He maintained his Overweight rating on this stock, and his $104 price target. The stock closed at $74.04 on Friday and traded as high as $76.98 in pre-market trading Monday. CRISPR Therapeutics stock was recently trading up 2.25% to $75.71.

Shares of CRISPR Therapeutics are up about 22% so far this year. Of the 17 analysts tracked by FactSet who cover the stock, 11 assign it a Buy rating. The analysts have a mean target price of $75.75.

In his note on Monday, Tenthoff highlighted recent data showing promising early results in two transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia patients who had received CTX001, a treatment CRISPR Therapeutics is developing in partnership with Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX).

He also highlighted developments in the companys CAR-T cancer programs, a handful of which are beginning or about to begin Phase I/II studies. We see the potential for CRISPR to garner significant value from its wholly-owned CAR-T pipeline, Tenthoff wrote.

CRISPR Therapeutics has a market capitalization of $4.5 billion. It has outperformed the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) so far this year, which is up 11.4%, and the S&P 500, which is down 6.9%.

Write to Josh Nathan-Kazis at josh.nathan-kazis@barrons.com

Excerpt from:
CRISPR Therapeutics Is a Top Pick for Piper Sandler. Heres Why. - Barron's

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