Intellia Stock Dips After Morgan Stanley Downgrade, Retail Sentiment Weakens

Intellia Therapeutics, Inc. shares declined over 5% on Monday morning after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to ‘Equal Weight’ from ‘Overweight,’ slashing its price target from $56 to $11. 

The downgrade and what the brokerage says is a broader lack of catalysts for the year dented retail sentiment, with conversations on Stocktwits turning more skeptical.

Morgan Stanley cited a “more measured launch” for nexiguran ziclumeran, Intellia’s lead therapy for transthyretin amyloidosis, a rare and progressive heart disorder. 

The brokerage also pointed to the company’s recent discontinuation of its NTLA-3001 program for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency-associated lung disease, reducing near-term growth prospects.

The analyst noted growing competition from non-gene-editing therapies, which could challenge Intellia’s position as a leader in “in vivo” CRISPR editing. 

Intellia’s approach reportedly delivers CRISPR components directly into the body to modify DNA, bypassing the need to engineer treatments from a patient’s cells.

Earlier this month, Intellia announced a 27% workforce reduction and plans to halt the development of NTLA-3001 and some early-stage research programs.

The company expects to incur $8 million in restructuring charges in the first quarter but believes the changes, combined with its cash balance of $862 million at the end of the fourth quarter, will extend its cash runway into the first half of 2027.

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits turned more ‘bearish’ following the downgrade. 

Intellia’s stock has a high short interest of 21.3% and has lost nearly 60% over the past 12 months.

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