Head to Head Contrast: Neumora Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NMRA) versus Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX)

Neumora Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NMRA) and Vaxcyte (NASDAQ:PCVX) are both medical companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and dividends.

Volatility and Risk

Neumora Therapeutics has a beta of 2.73, suggesting that its stock price is 173% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vaxcyte has a beta of 1.2, suggesting that its stock price is 20% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Neumora Therapeutics and Vaxcyte”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Neumora Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	-$235.93 million	($1.61)	-0.63
Vaxcyte	N/A	N/A	-$402.27 million	($3.99)	-9.27

Vaxcyte is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Neumora Therapeutics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Neumora Therapeutics and Vaxcyte’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Neumora Therapeutics	N/A	-73.63%	-68.97%
Vaxcyte	N/A	-23.53%	-22.20%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Neumora Therapeutics and Vaxcyte, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Neumora Therapeutics	1	5	3	0	2.22
Vaxcyte	0	0	9	1	3.10

Neumora Therapeutics currently has a consensus price target of $9.29, suggesting a potential upside of 810.36%. Vaxcyte has a consensus price target of $136.50, suggesting a potential upside of 269.02%. Given Neumora Therapeutics’ higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Neumora Therapeutics is more favorable than Vaxcyte.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

47.7% of Neumora Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.8% of Vaxcyte shares are owned by institutional investors. 26.8% of Neumora Therapeutics shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.1% of Vaxcyte shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

About Neumora Therapeutics

Neumora Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in developing therapeutic treatments for brain diseases, neuropsychiatric disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases. The company develops navacaprant (NMRA-140), a novel once-daily oral kappa opioid receptor antagonist, which is in phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of major depressive disorder. It also develops NMRA-511 that is in phase 1 clinical trials in patients with agitation associated with dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease; and NMRA-266, which is in the phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of schizophrenia and other neuropsychiatric disorders. In addition, its preclinical phase product includes NMRA-NMDA for the treatment of schizophrenia; NMRA-CK1d, a CK1d inhibitor program for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; NMRA-NLRP3 for the treatment of certain neurodegenerative conditions; and NMRA-GCase for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. The company was formerly known as RBNC Therapeutics, Inc. and changed its name to Neumora Therapeutics, Inc. in October 2021. Neumora Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 2019 and is headquartered in Watertown, Massachusetts.

About Vaxcyte

Vaxcyte, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology vaccine company, develops novel protein vaccines to prevent or treat bacterial infectious diseases. Its lead vaccine candidate is VAX-24, a 24-valent investigational pneumococcal conjugate vaccine for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease. The company also develops VAX-31 to protect against emerging strains and to help address antibiotic resistance; VAX-A1, a novel conjugate vaccine candidate to prevent disease caused by Group A Streptococcus; VAX-PG, a novel protein vaccine candidate targeting keystone pathogen responsible for periodontitis; and VAX-GI to prevent Shigella, a bacterial illness. The company was formerly known as SutroVax, Inc. and changed its name to Vaxcyte, Inc. in May 2020. Vaxcyte, Inc. was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in San Carlos, California.