Are you looking for genome sequencing stocks? Genome sequencing is determining the full DNA sequence of an organism’s genome. With this information, scientists can determine the likelihood of a genetic disorder, characterize gene mutations that may help explain the science behind cancer, and even understand how diseases spread.
You’re not too far off if it sounds like something from a science fiction movie! Until recently, the genetics field hasn’t received the attention it deserved from investors. Most people don’t like investing in fields they don’t understand. And genetics is not something you pick up in a high school science class.
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Genome Sequencing Stocks Introduction
The genetic material we’re made from has generations of biological history. As the field evolves, so too does the likelihood of improving the quality of human life. There are believed to be over 6,000 genetic diseases, some of which can be life-threatening or, at the very least, seriously debilitating.
According to Britannica, it’s estimated that 10% of the global population has some form of genetic disease. This places the current numbers at between 700 and 800 million people. What does that mean for genome sequencing stocks? Let’s find out.
Like with biotech or fintech stocks, most investors lump companies operating within the same broader industry into the same basket of stocks. The broader genetics industry has a lot of well-known companies. However, not all of them are genome sequencing stocks. So, what other genetic industries are there? Let’s take a look!
Gene Editing
If you’ve spent time on FinTwit or Reddit, you’ve undoubtedly heard of CRISPR Gene editing. Wait, gene editing? Editing our genes? That’s right, CRISPR is one of the hottest sectors of genetics because of the recent success of Intellia Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NTLA).
They completed the first-ever In Vivo gene edit to treat the liver disease Transthyretin Amyloidosis. Without going into too much detail about the process, gene editing sends in strands of CRISPR RNA or crRNAs to target the defective strands of DNA.
At the point of contact with the defective DNA strand, enzymes are produced by the CRISPR system called Cas9. This carries out specific gene editing.
This usually means the defective parts are cut from the regular DNA strand. The crRNAs are CRISPR-specific forms of mRNA or messenger RNA; the same technology is used behind most COVID-19 vaccines. Why is this important?
If you think about it for a second, Intellia sent in manufactured genes to change defective DNA strands inside of the body on their own, without human guidance. The technology opens up the possibility to completely eradicate genetic diseases. And Intellia has its sights set on other uses like bone marrow delivery. We’ve all lost someone to cancer. So this is exciting stuff.
Genome Mapping
Often confused with genome sequencing, genome mapping identifies the genes and their relative distance and location within the entire genome. Genome mapping is important because it gives us a view into which genes have been passed on to us. And which genes may be transmitted to our children, as one example. Mapping generally occurs before genome sequencing and makes up the science of learning about our genetic past and looking into the future.
Genome Mapping Stocks: Bionano Genomics (NASDAQ: BNGO)
List of Genome Sequencing Stocks
| Symbol | Name |
|---|---|
| NTLA | Intellia Therapeutics |
| REGN | Regeneron Pharmaceuticals |
| CRSP | CRISPR Therapeutics |
| EDIT | Editas Medicine |
Genome Sequencing Stocks Breakdown
As investors, getting in early on developing industries helps us potentially reap life-changing future gains. Think about people who invested in the single digits in Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) or Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). This is similar to where the genetics industry is now, in the early innings of a very long game.
You only need the patience and the stomach to hold the stocks through pullbacks and dips. So, what are some of the best genome sequencing stocks to invest in for 2021?
1. Illumina (NASDAQ: ILMN)
One of the leaders in the genome sequencing stocks industry is Illumina. They develop and manufacture genome sequencing equipment. At the beginning of 2020, Illumina had over 7,300 global customers and installed over 17,000 genome sequencing machines worldwide.
The company is also doing a lot of work in cancer research, as over 55 oncology therapies require genomic testing. Illumina estimates this market will grow by a 25% CAGR by 2025. On top of that, Illumina announced last year that it acquired cancer research company Grail for $8 billion. The two companies will work together to reach the shared goal of early cancer detection—great news for genome sequencing stocks.
2. Agilent Technologies (NYSE: A)
Agilent is more of an industrial conglomerate that happens to do some work in the medical sciences sector, which includes some genomics. They make a couple of different genome sequencing machines, including the SureSelect Custom DNA Enrichment Probes.
Its Alissa Interpret genomics analysis software platform streamlines genetic data analysis workflow and provides Agilent with a software subscription service. Agilent isn’t one of the sexiest genetic companies on the market. However, it’s a rocksteady medical analytics company that serves dozens of different industries besides genomics.
3. Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO)
For many, this is the $200 billion market cap company you’ve never heard of. Especially when it comes to the discussion of companies in genetics. Thermo Fisher has been involved in genome sequencing and several methods for over 25 years.
These include Targeted Sequencing for individual genes or sets of genes, De Novo Sequencing, which builds a reference genome from scratch, and Exome Sequencing, which is a region of the genome that contains 85% of disease-causing mutations. Thermo Fisher is even involved in gene editing, utilizing CRISPR and TALEN-based genome editing technologies.
4. Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ: PACB)
We mentioned this in the base editing section, but PACB also does genome sequencing. This is a much smaller company than the others but has been a very popular investment by Cathie Wood of Ark Invest for their ARK.G Genomics ETF. PACB specializes in SMRT or Single-Molecule Real-Time Sequencing.
PACB is also a perfect example of the gains these industries can provide patient investors. If you bought shares in July 2020, the stock would have already returned 1,000% by February 2021. However, shares have pulled back since the all-time high price of $53.69.
Gene Editing Stocks
- Intellia Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NTLA),
- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: REGN),
- CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CRSP),
- Editas Medicine (NASDAQ: EDIT)
Base Editing Stocks
- Beam Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BEAM),
- Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ: PACB)
If you thought gene editing was neat, wait until you hear about base editing. While CRISPR gene editing targets specific strands of defective DNA, base editing doesn’t need to rely on breaking the DNA.
Instead, it directly implants new genetic information at the site of the DNA that’s being targeted.
Base editing is still a new technology, with only one company holding a base editing license for therapeutics. They’re Beam Technologies (NASDAQ: BEAM).
In fact. It’s inherently safer than CRISPR editing. And they could solve genetic diseases, including several types of cancer.
This is all very exciting for genome sequencing stocks. The future is bright for medicine. Maybe we’ll see telehealth coming so far that they can do this remotely.
Which Type of Genetics Is the Best Investment?
That’s a difficult question to answer. Get out your crystal ball because any of these has the potential to provide exponential returns over the next few decades.
Base editing and gene editing are truly in their infancy. But Intellia’s successful In Vivo treatment is a tremendous first step in the right direction.
Genome sequencing will be crucial in understanding how and why genetic diseases work the way they do, as the genes get passed on through the generations.
There are even more sectors popping up in the field of genetics that we haven’t even discussed, like synthetic biology, which manufactures synthetic DNA through manufactured bio-organisms, and other incredible forms of technology. When they go public, check out Ginkgo Bioworks and Twist Biosciences (NASDAQ: TWST).
You could buy the ARK.G Genomics ETF, but the fund has been criticized due to some of its top holdings. Regeneron and PACB are the third and fourth highest weighted holdings. While CRISPR is 15th, Intellia is 17th, and Beam is 22nd. You may be better off making your basket of genome sequencing stocks from the ones we listed in this article!
Final Thoughts: Genome Sequencing Stocks
Genomics is the future of medicine and healthcare, period. The treatments that have been completed are light years ahead of any medical treatment we’ve ever seen in human history. Picking the winners will be difficult, but doing your research and due diligence in these companies will help you pick out which ones should thrive and which will fade away into obscurity.
But hey, if you are interested in discussing genomics stocks or stocks from any industry, the Bullish Bears members chat is an excellent place to swap ideas and research with other experienced investors. Our daily trading rooms give you direct access to chatting with our experienced traders, and you even get access to our Discord chat server and other investing education that you can’t find anywhere else on the internet! We have a lot of fun in our trade rooms. They have great content.
