If you're looking to add a bit of growth to your portfolio, you may turn to well-recognized growth companies that already generate major revenue -- or you could turn to the potential winners of tomorrow. Both types of companies make good additions. The former offers you a combination of security and growth, while the latter often offers you innovation at a bargain price.
Right now, let's talk about future winners. And the perfect place to find them is in the biotech industry. Here, companies are working on amazing techniques to treat and even cure various diseases. In many cases, these players could skyrocket once they reach their goals -- and even as they hit milestones along the way.
Let's check out two exciting biotech stocks that may climb 58% and 200%, according to Wall Street.
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1. CRISPR Therapeutics
CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP 2.32%) reached a major goal in recent years: It won approval in 2023 of its first gene editing treatment, Casgevy for blood disorders. This marked an important moment because it was the world's first approval of a CRISPR-based gene editing therapy and demonstrated the ability of this technology to treat disease.
CRISPR gene editing involves the cutting of DNA and the leveraging of a natural repair process to fix a faulty gene. Because the technique repairs genes responsible for disease, it acts as a functional cure -- this makes it a true game changer. Casgevy's launch took time, due to the months-long treatment process, but trends are positive: In the fourth quarter, Casgevy generated $54 million in revenue, and for the full year, it brought in $116 million.
NASDAQ: CRSP
Key Data Points
The company expects readouts from clinical trials spanning various disease indications this year, suggesting there may be several catalysts for stock performance just ahead. For example, CRISPR Therapeutics aims to release updates on zugo-cel in autoimmune diseases, as well as on CTX310 for a condition that may lead to heart disease.
I also like the fact that CRISPR Therapeutics has more than $1.9 billion in cash so that it may support the development of its pipeline.
Wall Street expects this stock to climb 58% over the coming 12 months, making now a great time to pick up shares of this biotech innovator.
2. Viking Therapeutics
Viking Therapeutics (VKTX 1.73%) hasn't yet commercialized a product, but it's progressing through late-stage clinical trials -- and with a candidate that could enter one of the biggest growth markets in healthcare. I'm talking about the obesity drug market. Viking is developing VK2735 in injectable and oral formats. The injectable format is involved in a phase 3 trial right now, while the oral format is set to enter phase 3 in the third quarter of the year.
NASDAQ: VKTX
Key Data Points
Both forms of VK2735 have delivered solid trial results so far and aim to enter the GLP-1 drug market in the not-too-distant future. This class of drugs works by stimulating hormonal pathways involved in digestion, and by doing so, GLP-1 drugs help regulate blood sugar levels and appetite. Today's commercialized GLP-1 drugs -- made by Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk -- have helped people worldwide easily shed pounds, and that's why they've become so popular.
Viking also aims to launch a clinical trial for a new type of weight loss candidate this year -- one that interacts with amylin and calcitonin receptors, which play a key role in metabolism.
Analysts predict an obesity drug market of almost $100 billion by the end of this decade, so there could be plenty of room for the market giants and certain newcomers to generate blockbuster revenue in this space.
Viking stock may soar as much as 200% over the coming 12 months, according to the average Wall Street estimate. If such a gain happens -- even over a longer period of time -- early investors will score a major win.
