Cathie Wood's specialty is investing in innovators with potential for explosive growth. The founder of Ark Invest doesn't let short-term stock movements bother her, and she's just fine with waiting for a stock to deliver performance over time. Wood's flagship Ark Innovation ETF sank last year amid market turmoil, but Wood held onto her favorite stocks through the tough times, and the fund now is outperforming the S&P 500.
In recent weeks, Wood's been adding to her positions in stocks involved in a very exciting field. I'm talking about the high-growth market of CRISPR gene editing, a technology that fixes faulty genes responsible for disease. If these companies are successful, early investors in the shares could win big. In fact, two of Wood's latest buys look cheap today considering their enormous earnings potential -- and these top growth stocks could make you richer over time.
CRISPR Therapeutics
CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP 1.45%) takes its name from the technology it uses. It stands for "Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats" of genetic information and refers to a system certain bacteria use to defend themselves from virus. Today, CRISPR Therapeutics and others have applied this to drug development by cutting DNA at a particular location and allowing a natural repair to take place.
The amazing thing about gene editing is it offers the possibility of actually curing certain diseases. And CRISPR Therapeutics may be one of the first to accomplish this. The company is heading for two big moments right now. Regulators in the U.S. expect to decide on exa-cel, its gene editing candidate for sickle cell disease, in December, and exa-cel for use in beta thalassemia in March.
These blood disorders have limited treatment options, so doctors and patients may rush to try exa-cel if it's approved. The treatment could become a blockbuster, with a forecast of $1.7 billion in revenue in 2028, according to Evaluate Pharma.
CRISPR Therapeutics' pipeline includes several other candidates, including an immuno-oncology one that's approaching the finish line. CTX-110 is involved in a phase 2 study that may support a regulatory submission.
NASDAQ: CRSP
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Meanwhile, CRISPR Therapeutics shares are little changed this year and have greatly declined from levels reached a couple of years ago -- when we didn't have as much visibility about the future. It's no surprise that a bargain-hunting Wood has been buying up shares of the company, which already is one of the top 10 holdings in her healthcare fund.
Intellia Therapeutics
Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA +2.02%) also is among the top 10 positions in Wood's healthcare ETF. This player is farther from commercialization than CRISPR Therapeutics, but it has some very promising programs targeting unmet needs. So, if Intellia's programs make it to the finish line, the revenue opportunity could be big.
The company reported great news just this week. Regulators gave the thumbs-up for Intellia to start a phase 3 trial for NTLA-2001, a candidate to treat transthyretin amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy. The illness, caused by the proliferation of a misfolded protein, affects various organs including the heart. Intellia aims to launch the trial by the end of this year.
The company also recently announced good news regarding another program. Interest was so high in its hereditary angioedema (HAE) candidate that it rapidly identified all the patients needed for its phase 2 trial. Intellia expects to complete the enrollment process by the end of this year. HAE involves severe and unpredictable swelling that can happen as often as every seven to 14 days.
Like CRISPR Therapeutics, Intellia is designing potential products that could cure hard-to-treat diseases. So, again, if the company brings one of these candidates to market, revenue and the share price could soar.
NASDAQ: NTLA
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Meanwhile, the financial picture looks solid for a company at this stage of its story -- Intellia finished the most recent quarter with about $1.1 billion in cash, and assets outweigh its liabilities.
So, it's logical Cathie Wood is buying shares now, after they've dropped more than 80% from a high back in 2021. Over time, Wood -- and you -- could win on this bargain basement buy.
