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what it is
Beam is a biotech company trying to rewrite broken DNA with precision gene-editing drugs.
how it gets paid
Last year Beam Therapeutics made $140M in revenue. collaboration and license revenue was the main engine at $98M, or 70% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 120.0% last year. Revenue grew 164% vs. prior year to $26 million.
what just happened
Latest quarter revenue hit $26 million, but EPS fell to -$3.32, which is the part you actually have to care about.
At a glance
B+ balance sheet — decent shape, but not bulletproof
40/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
37.2x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
-$4.58 fy2024 eps est
$64M fy2024 rev est
xvary composite: 58/100 — below average
What they do
Beam is a biotech company trying to rewrite broken DNA with precision gene-editing drugs.
Beam’s edge is its base-editing platform: CRISPR protein plus guide RNA plus editing enzyme, all built to change DNA without cutting both strands. Plain English: less molecular chaos, more precision, at least in theory. So what: 483 employees are building one integrated system across ex vivo (cells edited outside your body) and in vivo (edited inside your body), which gives you more shots on goal than a one-program biotech.
How they make money
$140M
annual revenue · their business grew +120.0% last year
collaboration and license revenue
$98M
milestone revenue
$21M
research services revenue
$11M
platform access and other
$10M
The products that matter
liver-targeted base editing program
BEAM-302
Q1 2026 initial data
for a $3B company with no approved-product engine, the Q1 2026 BEAM-302 readout is the number that matters. if it works, the platform gets more real fast.
lead catalyst
cell therapy program
Risto-cel
2026 BLA target
management is targeting a 2026 Biologics License Application submission. if that slips, one of the few visible regulatory milestones on this page moves with it.
regulatory path
platform and pipeline funding
Cash runway
$1.25B balance
the $1.25B cash balance is what keeps the science alive long enough to matter. it buys time. it does not buy a moat.
time to prove it
Key numbers
n/a
operating margin
Prior margin KPI failed sanity check — verify in filings. Operating margin → how much profit is left after running the business → so what: Beam is nowhere near self-funding.
$140M
ttm revenue
This is the SEC-backed trailing revenue base, and it shows Beam has real top-line dollars, just nowhere near enough yet.
$139M
long-term debt
Long-term debt → money owed over many years → so what: debt is only 5% of capital, which means the balance sheet is not the main problem.
1.85
beta
Beta → how wildly a stock moves versus the market → so what: Beam tends to turn normal market swings into louder ones.
Financial health
B+
strength
- balance sheet grade B+ — solid but not elite
- risk rank 2 — safer than 80% of stocks
- price stability 5 / 100
- long-term debt $139M (5% of capital)
B+ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for BEAM right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
missed estimates
Latest quarter revenue hit $26 million, but EPS fell to -$3.32, which is the part you actually have to care about.
Revenue grew 164% vs. prior year to $26 million, but EPS worsened 202% vs. prior year to -$3.32. Translation: top-line progress is real, but losses are still driving the story.
$26M
revenue
$3.32
eps
+164%
revenue growth
the number that mattered
The number that mattered was -$3.32 EPS because Beam is still a financing story before it becomes a product story.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is BEAM-302 disappointing in Q1 2026. that is the clearest near-term test of whether this stays a platform promise or starts becoming a product story.
med
Clinical readout miss
BEAM-302 is the lead asset and initial data is expected in Q1 2026. weak data would hit the main catalyst supporting a $3B valuation.
Impact: a disappointing readout would shrink the optionality premium fast, because there is no approved-product engine underneath it.
med
Cash burn outruns progress
beam has $1.25B in cash and just $139M in long-term debt, but expected annual revenue is still only $64M and the latest net margin n/a (verify filings).
Impact: cash buys time, not validation. if the pipeline calendar slips while burn continues, the balance sheet stops feeling like a cushion and starts feeling like a countdown.
med
Regulatory timeline slippage
risto-cel is targeting a 2026 BLA submission, but targeted dates are not approvals. FDA timing can move, and that movement matters more when milestones are the thesis.
Impact: a delay would push out one of the few visible value-creation steps on the page and leave investors waiting on a thinner catalyst calendar.
most of the equity story still rests on Q1 2026 BEAM-302 data, a 2026 risto-cel filing target, and a $1.25B cash buffer lasting long enough to reach both.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
Q1 2026
BEAM-302 initial data
this is the main near-term catalyst. if the readout is strong, the platform gets a lot easier to underwrite.
ongoing
revenue quality
watch whether reported revenue starts looking repeatable or stays collaboration-driven and jumpy. one quarter is noise. a pattern is a business.
2026
risto-cel filing discipline
the 2026 BLA target matters because beam does not have many visible commercial milestones. a slip would be felt immediately.
quarterly
cash versus burn
$1.25B is the strategic asset here. track how quickly it moves and whether each quarter buys real pipeline progress.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
40 / 100
in human-speak, the reported numbers can swing hard because collaboration revenue does.
balance-sheet risk rank
2
safer than many biotech peers on paper thanks to the cash balance, even if the share price behaves like biotech.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for BEAM is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$28
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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