Could CRISPR Therapeutics Become the Next Vertex Pharmaceuticals?
Nasdaq Most smaller biotech companies would love to follow in the footsteps of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX). The company is the global leader in cystic fibrosis (CF) treatments. And these products help Vertex generate billions of dollars in annual revenue and profit. The stock also has rewarded investors with a gain of more than 120% over the past five years.
Let's turn to a smaller biotech that Vertex knows very well: CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CRSP). The two companies are partners in a blood disorders program and recently submitted their treatment candidate for regulatory approval. If they win a nod, CRISPR may enter a big phase of growth.
But could CRISPR become the next Vertex? Let's find out.
Vertex's market-cap growth
First, to become the next Vertex, a company would have to grow to a similar market capitalization. Today, Vertex is worth $85 billion.
Vertex, of course, didn't start out at that size. About 10 years ago, its market value totaled less than $25 billion. And in the years preceding the approval of its first CF drug -- so around 2010 -- Vertex's market cap was about $7 billion.
