Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX) are up more than 19% over the past 12 months during a period in which many other gene-editing biotech stocks tumbled.

It's easy to see why investors are piling into the stock. The company is profitable thanks to its cystic fibrosis therapies, and its key CRISPR-editing therapy, exa-cel, is waiting for approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat sickle cell disease (SCD) and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia (TDT).

It might be too late to get in on the Vertex run-up, but there's another CRISPR-editing company that could be an even better long-term buy, one that Vertex is already collaborating with on exa-cel: CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CRSP). CRISPR is up more than 17% this year, so the secret is getting out, but it is still down over 20% over the past 12 months.

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Source Fool.com