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ginko bioworks stock report

How this Biotech is Reinventing the World through Coding

health care Oct 26, 2021

We don't publish about Biotech companies often but this opportunity was too good to pass up. This next company is literally reinventing the physical world around us through biology. 

What looks to some like the next Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos, is actually a company delivering on its promises this time around. So who are they?

Enter: Ginko Bioworks

Ginko Bioworks (Ticker: DNA) is a world leader in synthetic biology who's raised over several billion dollars and currently sits around a $30B valuation. 

For a company that's only doing $200M in annual projected revenue, a 150x revenue valuation surely looks expensive. But for once, this is a biotech company that is looking to live up to the hype.

Let's get into it below 👇

 

Ginko Bioworks Overview:

So before we dive into our investment, let's give you the high level on who they are (skip to the section, "Investment Opportunity" if you wish to see the play):

Ginko was founded in 2009 by MIT engineers who wanted a way to alter DNA like code on a computer. 

Today they're working on the ability to make this dream a reality. So for example if they find an organism with an interesting property, Ginko is able to snip out the DNA behind that property, and then shove the DNA into something else.

The idea was if you can read and write DNA code and you have a machine that will run it, then you’re just programming basically.

So Ginkgo is essentially starting as a programming business, giving biologists and companies the ability to create DNA and programs for cells using their technology.

So for example, inside of every cell on planet earth there is digital code in the form of DNA (which is comprised of four basic compounds denoted by: A, C, T & G). What Ginko is doing with this DNA is called DNA sequencing and printing.

Which is essentially the ability to read the DNA and then recreate/alter it and ultimately "print" it out.

So in essence, you can type in the DNA sequencing code you want onto a computer, and then the printing machine will make that DNA sequence ready to order and then you can stick that DNA inside of a cell!

This is a massive oversimplification but think of that like cut and paste on your computer. If you find some data you like, you can simply cut/copy out the data and paste it elsewhere.

 

Phew... Pause. Exhale. Take a Break. Resume.

 

So if you made it this far you may be asking yourself, "Why is this so important?"

  • The big promise by Ginko is that we’ll find a new means to harness nature and bend it to our will!

One day they hope to be manufacture chemicals, fuels and even physical objects in super efficient ways using biology instead of traditional manufacturing methods.

If you thought 3D printing was out there, this takes it to the next level! While one day they're hoping to recreate Jurassic park (half a joke here), today they're focused on more practical applications. And today they're starting small.

 

Today's Applications:

Ginko recently took DNA from a Hawaiian flower that was extinct. They brought this sample to their DNA sequencer and read the code of the DNA.

They then found the part of the DNA that gave that flower its unique scent. So they isolated that DNA strand of ~6k letters and inserted it into a bacteria in order to grow it. So basically they can splice DNA sequences using these methods and stick in their new DNA programs.

And now as this bacteria grew it let off the fragrance that that flower did! Thereby bringing back to life a flower that was previously extinct.

While this applications isn't getting anyone truly excited today, this is laying the groundwork for what is next.

 

Investment Opportunity:

Yes we realize that was a lot of science talk but it was necessary in order for you to understand the business case for Ginko. And now that you understand what they do, here's what has us excited about what is next!

  • Right now they are extracting a lot of DNA strands in order to build up their code base in order to help them understand which of those pieces are DNA are able to achieve the desired outcomes that their customers want to do. They eventually want to automate all of this and make changing DNA fast and cheap. So they built a huge automated facility where they give robots the DNA they need and the robots go to work actually doing the refining process. 
  • The CEO thinks one day many factories will be gone and that with biology we can just grow everything we need. He says because it has digital code we can read and write it and ultimately alter it. Leaving us at the point where the sky is truly the limit.
  • An example of a more practical use case today is in the agriculture industry. For example, humans and animals need food. And in order to grow food we need fertilizer. But in order to make fertilizer you need to burn natural gas to make ammonia which is the core component of many fertilizers. The problem is that this contributes to 4% of greenhouse gasses. But certain legumes have DNA that makes the need for fertilizer very low because it has a natural way to produce it itself. So their CEO said if they took that DNA and put it into bacteria and then coated the seed of certain plants with that bacteria, then those plants wouldn’t need nearly as much fertilizer, thus reducing the need for it and lowering greenhouse gases. This is an active project they are working on with Bayer - the German multinational pharmaceutical and life sciences company.

 

Summary:

While these are useful applications today, the reality is that no one truly knows what lies down the road. A lot of the use cases will be impossible to predict and we are just at the tip of the iceberg with companies like Ginko.

While it is near impossible to predict where they'll be in a few years, from what we've seen so far they are years ahead of anyone else. With such a large runway and access to talent & capital, Ginko is a bet on the future of biotech.

If they're able to continue down the road towards success, the price of their stock will absolutely explode in years to come.

But the key to this pick is knowing the price target and when it will hit that target.

 


 

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Current Price: $14.50

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Ticker: DNA

Market Cap: $28.5B

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