Crispr Therapeutics price target raised to $57 from $50 at RBC Capital

RBC Capital analyst Luca Issi raised the firm’s price target on Crispr Therapeutics to $57 from $50 but keeps a Sector Perform rating on the shares. The “hallway buzz” at the ASH conference is the historic approval of the first gene-editing approach for sickle cell disease, the analyst tells investors in a research note, adding that doctor are “clearly enthusiastic” about the breakthrough and favor Vertex Pharmaceuticals (blue‘>VRTX) and Crispr Therapeutics over Bluebird Bio (BLUE). The firm adds however that while the approval on Friday is an important milestone for the broader field, it also continues to see in vivo gene editing, where Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA) is ahead, as the future of gene editing.