Biotech stock Verve Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERV) blasted upward today after posting its third-quarter results. Verve Therapeutics, perhaps best known for gene editing capabilities, produced results that turned analysts’ projections on their heads. It also brought in a lot of interested investors, as shares shot up over 29% in Tuesday afternoon’s trading.
The firm delivered in a big way on a relative scale, though not so much on an objective one. Verve posted a loss of $0.72 per share, but analysts were looking for a loss of $0.92, so that qualified as a win. However, the big win came from revenue, which came in at $3.12 million. That was enough to soar past analyst estimates looking for $1.08 million, but also represented a huge run-up against the third quarter of 2022. $3.12 million was actually 235.5% improved from 2022’s third quarter.
That was good news to start with, but Verve Therapeutics promptly followed it up with some new updates on its lead drug’s development. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allowed a new investigational drug application for Verve’s new treatment of “heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia.” Plus, Verve is also poised to show off data about that same drug at an upcoming American Heart Association Scientific Sessions conference. Just to top it off, Verve has two more drugs in the pipeline that will start testing in 2024, with one in the first half and the other in the second half.
Is Verve Therapeutics a Good Stock?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on VERV stock based on four Buys and three Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average VERV price target of $37 per share implies 92.01% upside potential.
