Top 5 NASDAQ Genetics Stocks (Updated December 2022)

Year-to-date gain: 122.71 percent; market cap: US$242.07 million; current share price: US$6.06

Voyager Therapeutics is advancing early stage programs using its proprietary adeno-associated virus (AAV) capsids to develop gene therapies for diseases related to the central nervous system. Its pipeline includes gene therapies for Huntington’s Disease, monogenic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, spinal muscular atrophy, GBA1 mutations and HER1+ brain metastases.

Voyager recently inked an agreement to give Novartis (NYSE:NVS) “options to license novel AAV capsids generated from Voyager’s RNA-driven TRACERTM capsid discovery platform for potential use with three undisclosed (central nervous system) targets and options to access capsids for two additional targets to be agreed on in the future.”

Voyager's share price reached its highest point in 2022 on April 20, hitting US$10.60.

Year-to-date gain: 87.59 percent; market cap: US$110.09 million; current share price: US$7.52

Nuvectis Pharma is developing precision medicines for the treatment of cancer. The firm's pipeline of products includes NXP800, an oral small-molecule HSF1-pathway inhibitor, and NXP900, an oral small-molecule SRC/YES1 kinase inhibitor.

The US Food and Drug Administration recently granted fast-track designation to NXP800 for the treatment of platinum-resistant, ARID1A-mutated ovarian carcinoma. Nuvectis' share price hit its highest point in 2022 on May 18, reaching US$20.92.

Year-to-date gain: 44.69 percent; market cap: US$164.73 million; current share price: US$10.09

ProPhase Labs is a diagnostics and genomics company that is leveraging its CLIA-accredited lab services to provide whole genome sequencing and research directly to consumers. ProPhase is also building a genomics database for further research. Its subsidiary ProPhase Precision Medicine focuses on genomics testing technologies that help identify inherited disorders, predict disease risk, identify expected drug response and characterize genetic mutations.

ProPhase Labs made two big announcements in June that greatly boosted its share price. First, it partnered with widely recognized healthcare diagnostics companies as part of its plan to significantly expand its in-house clinical testing capabilities. Second, the company announced the formation of a wholly owned subsidiary, ProPhase BioPharma, for the licensing and development of novel drugs, compounds and biotechnology. This NASDAQ genetics stock spiked to its highest point in 2022 on July 11, hitting US$15.25.

Year-to-date gain: 40.63 percent; market cap: US$873.69 million; current share price: US$57.57

Biotech firm Cogent Biosciences is developing precision therapies for genetically defined diseases, with a focus on treating the underlying cause of these disease. Its product pipeline includes CGT9486, a selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor designed to target the mutations responsible for the unchecked proliferation of mast cells found in patients with advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

The company recently announced the initiation of a Phase 3 PEAK trial in imatinib-resistant, second-line gastrointestinal stromal tumor patients. Cogent's share price hit a 2022 high of US$15.25 on September 6.

Year-to-date gain: 40.63 percent; market cap: US$873.69 million; current share price: US$4.39

The last NASDAQ genetics stock on this list is pre-clinical biopharmaceutical firm Wave Life Sciences, which owns a diverse pipeline of nucleic acid therapeutics that use PRISM, its proprietary discovery and drug-development platform. These therapies are designed to address rare genetic diseases of the central nervous system, as well as muscles, eyes, the liver and skin.

Wave's key milestones for 2022 include a positive update from its Huntington’s disease trial and the selection of WVE-006, its first RNA-editing candidate, for the treatment of alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency. The company expects to submit clinical trial applications for WVE-006 in 2023. The firm's share price hit its highest point in 2022 on October 17, reaching US$5.31.