Goldman: This Biotech Stock Could Double

The gene-editing concern is no stranger to bullish analyst attention

The shares of Crispr Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) are bucking today's broad-market headwinds, thanks to a positive analyst note at Goldman Sachs. Specifically, the brokerage firm launched coverage on the gene editing concern with a "buy" rating and an $86 price target -- more than double yesterday's close -- and waxed optimistic on the company's CRISPR/Cas9 technology. At last check, CRSP shares were up 5% to trade at $44.80, and options traders are rolling the dice on more upside.

Most analysts are already bullish toward Crispr Therapeutics stock, which boasts four "strong buy" ratings, compared to two "holds." Meanwhile, the average 12-month price target of $63.38 represents a premium of 40.8% to the equity's current price, and stands in uncharted territory.

As alluded to above, CRSP calls are trading at three times the average intraday clip, with more than 1,500 contracts already exchanged.Most active is the April 50 call, where it looks like some speculators are buying to open. By purchasing the calls to open, the buyers expect the security to surmount $50 by the close on Friday, April 20, when the options expire.

But just within the past hour there was massive action at the April 45 put, making it the most active option overall today by far. If traders are buying to open the contract, they're expecting the CRSP rally to stall and for the stock to hold below $45 in the weeks ahead.

The shares earlier today peaked at $49.32, and have spent the past several sessions struggling beneath their 40-day moving average. From a longer-term perspective, CRSP stock is still up an impressive 91% year-to-date, and notched an all-time high of $61.24 on March 9.