Should You Buy Shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in February?

Investors have bought into the promise of CRISPR technology for years. The ability to target and edit genes to treat cancer and various genetic conditions is an obvious home run. CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CRSP) won the race to market, partnering with Vertex Pharmaceuticals on Casgevy.

After its FDA approval in December 2023, CRISPR Therapeutics remains the only CRISPR company to have received approval for a gene-editing therapy. But CRISPR stock still trades at a fraction of its all-time high, even after popping on its recent earnings report.

Should investors buy shares of CRISPR Therapeutics in February? Here is what you need to know before you decide.

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An early success, followed by a strong pipeline

Casgevy is a one-time gene-editing therapy for treating sickle cell disease or beta thalassemia in patients aged 12 or older. It takes time to educate patients and ramp up sales for a new treatment. Only 64 patients received Casgevy in 2025, though 30 of those treatments were in the fourth quarter. That momentum should build; sickle cell disease affects more than 100,000 people in the United States and millions more worldwide.

CRISPR Therapeutics earns royalties on Casgevy sales through its collaboration with Vertex. Even though CRISPR will capture only a piece of Casgevy's revenue, the company is still looking at substantial growth ahead. Wall Street analysts see CRISPR's sales soaring from $37.3 million in 2025 to $134.4 million this year and $374.9 million in 2027.

The good news for long-term investors is that Casgevy proves CRISPR technology can work. CRISPR Therapeutics has five therapies in clinical trials for the treatment of autoimmune and cardiovascular diseases, Type 1 diabetes, and thromboembolic conditions. It wholly owns four of those five therapies.

Weighing the risks versus the potential rewards

Unfortunately, investors can't be sure that any of CRISPR's five experimental therapies will ultimately generate any revenue. The sobering truth is that far more therapies fail clinical tests than win FDA approval. That said, investors can afford some patience. The company burned through $345.9 million in cash in 2025 but still has just under $2 billion in cash and just $188 million in long-term debt.

Investors shouldn't look for the stock to make new highs anytime soon, either. The company has raised funds by issuing shares, increasing its share count by 26.9% over the past five years. That dilutes existing investors and lowers the stock's per-share upside, at least in the near term.

But even after all that, CRISPR Therapeutics looks like a solid buy right now. It's no longer a pre-revenue company, and Casgevy's success could justify the stock's valuation fairly soon. The stock trades at just 13 to 14 times 2027 revenue estimates, and that's not including growth beyond next year, or any additional pipeline developments.

Investors may not see the payoff right away, but the risk-to-reward dynamic finally looks compelling enough to warrant buying and holding CRISPR Therapeutics this month.

Justin Pope has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends CRISPR Therapeutics and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.