BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX – Get Free Report) and Prelude Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PRLD – Get Free Report) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk and institutional ownership.
Volatility and Risk
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.8, meaning that its stock price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Prelude Therapeutics has a beta of 0.9, meaning that its stock price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings for BioCryst Pharmaceuticals and Prelude Therapeutics, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| BioCryst Pharmaceuticals | 1 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 2.64 |
| Prelude Therapeutics | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2.33 |
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares BioCryst Pharmaceuticals and Prelude Therapeutics”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| BioCryst Pharmaceuticals | $450.71 million | 3.11 | -$88.88 million | ($0.05) | -133.20 |
| Prelude Therapeutics | $7.00 million | 16.26 | -$127.17 million | ($1.47) | -1.23 |
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has higher revenue and earnings than Prelude Therapeutics. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Prelude Therapeutics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Institutional and Insider Ownership
85.9% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.7% of Prelude Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 5.1% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 63.9% of Prelude Therapeutics shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Profitability
This table compares BioCryst Pharmaceuticals and Prelude Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| BioCryst Pharmaceuticals | -1.46% | -4.24% | 3.93% |
| Prelude Therapeutics | N/A | -121.16% | -84.93% |
Summary
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals beats Prelude Therapeutics on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About BioCryst Pharmaceuticals
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company, develops oral small-molecule and protein therapeutics to treat rare diseases. The company markets peramivir injection, an intravenous neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment of acute uncomplicated influenza under the RAPIVAB, RAPIACTA, and PERAMIFLU names; and ORLADEYO, an oral serine protease inhibitor to treat hereditary angioedema. It is also developing BCX10013, an oral factor D inhibitor for complement-mediated diseases. The company has collaborations and in-license relationships with the Torii Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.; Seqirus UK Limited; Shionogi & Co., Ltd.; Green Cross Corporation; National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority; the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; and The University of Alabama at Birmingham, as well as Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Industrial Research, Ltd. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina.
About Prelude Therapeutics
Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery and development of novel precision cancer medicines to underserved patients. It is developing PRT1419, a myeloid cell leukemia-1 inhibitor, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of selected relapsed/refractory myeloid or B-cell malignancies; PRT2527, a cyclin-dependent kinase, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of advanced solid tumors; PRT3645, a cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitor, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of advanced and metastatic solid tumors; and PRT3879, a SMARCA2 selective protein degrader, which is in Phase 2/3 clinical trial for the treatment of advanced and metastatic solid tumors with loss of SMARCA4 due to truncating mutation and/or deletion. The company's CDK9 program is a regulator of cancer-promoting transcriptional programs, including MCL1, MYC and MYB. Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated was incorporated in 2016 and is based in Wilmington, Delaware.
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