Editas Medicine EDIT reported a loss of 55 cents per share in the fourth quarter of 2024, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 39 cents. The company had incurred a loss of 23 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.

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Collaboration and other research and development (R&D) revenues, which comprise the company’s top line, were $30.6 million in the reported quarter, down 49% from the $60 million reported in the year-ago quarter. The reported figure missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $38 million. The year-over-year decline in revenues can be attributed to an upfront payment received in the year-ago quarter under Editas’ license agreement with Vertex Pharmaceuticals VRTX.

EDIT stock is declining in the pre-market hours today on account of the weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings results.

EDIT’s Q4 Results in Detail

In the fourth quarter of 2024, R&D expenses decreased 30% to $48.6 million compared with the $69.6 million reported in the year-ago period. The downtick in R&D expenses can be attributed to sublicense payments made to Vertex in the year-ago quarter, under the companies’ ongoing licensing agreement.

General and administrative expenses were $16.4 million in the reported quarter, up 13% year over year, due to increased professional service expenses for strategic business initiatives.

Restructuring charges were $12.2 million in the quarter under review on account of the discontinuation of the reni-cel program, initiated in December 2024 and the related workforce reduction. EDIT did not record any restructuring charges in the year-ago quarter.

Editas had cash, cash equivalents and investments worth $269.9 million as of Dec. 31, 2024, up from $265.1 million as of Sept. 30, 2024. The company expects its existing cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities, together with the retained portions of the payments payable under the license agreement with Vertex, to fund operating expenses and capital expenditure into the second quarter of 2027. Editas’ cash runway accounts for an estimated total expense of approximately $45-$55 million, covering the termination of the reni-cel program and associated employee exit costs.

Shares of Editas have lost 8.1% in the past three months compared with the industry’s decline of 2.3%.

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In late 2023, Vertex in-licensed rights to Editas’ Cas9 gene editing tool to develop its newly approved sickle cell disease (SCD) gene therapy, Casgevy. In October 2024, Editas announced the sale of certain future license fees and payments from its Cas9 license agreement with Vertex to a DRI Healthcare Trust subsidiary, receiving $57 million in upfront cash.

EDIT’s Full-Year Results

In 2024, Editas recorded total revenues of $32.3 million, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $46.1 million. The recorded figure declined 59% from the $78.1 million reported in 2023.

EDIT reported a loss per share of $2.88 in 2024, which was wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $2.71 per share. In 2023, the company reported a loss per share of $2.02.

EDIT’s Key Pipeline & Corporate Updates

Editas has no approved products in its portfolio at the moment. Therefore, pipeline development remains the key focus of the company.

In December 2024, Editas ended the reni-cel development program following the failure of an extensive search to yield a commercial partner. As a result of this decision, the company implemented cost-saving measures, including a workforce reduction of approximately 65%. The move reverted EDIT to the pre-clinical stage.

As part of its strategic reprioritization efforts, Editas has focused its workforce and resources on in vivo (within the living organism) pipeline development.

Editas has successfully demonstrated in vivo preclinical proof of concept for editing hematopoietic stem, liver and other cells in humanized mice and in non-human primates, twice. The company demonstrated effective editing of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) using proprietary lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) after a single dose in non-human primates, with further optimization ongoing to achieve higher therapeutic editing levels. EDIT is slated to announce an in vivo HSC development candidate by mid-2025 and share additional preclinical in vivo HSC data by the end of the year.

Additionally, high-efficiency gene editing in the liver was validated using AsCas12a delivered via LNPs, along with proof of an upregulation strategy in mice that significantly reduced disease biomarkers by increasing a relevant liver protein. Editas is on track to declare an in vivo liver development candidate in mid-2025 and to present additional preclinical in vivo liver data by year-end.

Editas also showcased its “plug ‘n play” LNP platform, enabling efficient delivery to extrahepatic cell types in humanized mice. The company plans to announce a new target cell type or tissue beyond HSCs and liver by year-end.

Editas Medicine, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Editas Medicine, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Editas Medicine, Inc. Quote

EDIT’s Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Editas currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks from the sector are Gilead Sciences GILD and BioMarin Pharmaceutical BMRN, each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here.

In the past 30 days, Gilead Sciences’ earnings estimates for 2025 have improved from $7.55 to $7.86 per share. During the same timeframe, the earnings per share for 2026 have improved from $7.82 to $8.17. In the past three months, shares of Gilead Sciences have gained 27.4%.

GILD’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 19.47%.

In the past 30 days, estimates for BioMarin Pharmaceutical’s 2025 earnings per share have increased from $4.01 to $4.24. Estimates for 2026 earnings per share have increased from $5.21 to $5.25 during the same timeframe. In the past three months, BioMarin Pharmaceutical shares have gained 6.6%.

BMRN’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 32.36%.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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