Eli Lilly's $1.3 Billion Verve Deal Signals Confidence In Gene Editing Space: Analyst

On Tuesday, Eli Lilly And Co LLY agreed to acquire Verve Therapeutics, Inc. VERV, a Boston-based clinical-stage company developing genetic medicines for cardiovascular disease.

Lilly offered to purchase Verve for $10.50 per share in cash, an aggregate of approximately $1.0 billion, plus one non-tradeable contingent value right per share that entitles the holder to receive up to an additional $3.00 per share, for a total potential consideration of up to $13.50 per share in cash, an aggregate of up to approximately $1.3 billion).

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2025. The purchase price payable at closing represents a premium of approximately 113% to the 30-day volume-weighted average trading price of Verve’s common stock ended on June 16, 2025, the last trading day before the deal announcement.

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The proposed acquisition of Verve Therapeutics by Eli Lilly is eliciting positive reactions from analysts, who see it as a crucial endorsement for the broader development-stage genetic medicines market.

Despite downgrading Verve to Neutral on Wednesday, HC Wainwright stated the offer provides “important validation” for a sector that has faced significant headwinds.

William Blair, which downgraded Verve to Market Perform on Tuesday, similarly believes the deal is advantageous for Verve shareholders and aligns with Lilly’s existing pipeline exposure.

HC Wainwright’s Mitchell Kapoor underscored the acquisition’s importance in validating gene editing for “mass markets” such as cardiovascular conditions, an area of interest for other companies as well.

Kapoor also suggested Lilly’s substantial market value and strong cash flow, largely driven by its leadership in weight-loss drugs, would deter serious competing bids for Verve.

William Blair’s Myles Minter concurred that while a bargain for Eli Lilly, the 115% premium still represents a “win” for Verve shareholders and the gene editing space, which has been under considerable macro and funding pressure.

Both analysts see the acquisition of Verve as a substantial positive for multiple gene editing stocks, including CRISPR Therapeutics AG CRSP, Intellia Therapeutics Inc NTLA, Editas Medicine Inc EDIT, Metagenomi Inc MGX, and Beam Therapeutics Inc BEAM.

Price Action: LLY stock is trading lower by 0.91% to $784.02, and VERV stock is down 1.98% at $11.16 at last check Wednesday.

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