ARS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SPRY – Get Free Report) and Aquestive Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AQST – Get Free Report) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership and risk.
Volatility and Risk
ARS Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 1.05, indicating that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Aquestive Therapeutics has a beta of 1.48, indicating that its share price is 48% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
68.2% of ARS Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 32.5% of Aquestive Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. 33.8% of ARS Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 6.8% of Aquestive Therapeutics shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Earnings & Valuation
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| ARS Pharmaceuticals | $84.28 million | 5.43 | -$171.30 million | ($2.18) | -2.11 |
| Aquestive Therapeutics | $44.54 million | 13.62 | -$83.78 million | ($0.65) | -7.44 |
Aquestive Therapeutics has lower revenue, but higher earnings than ARS Pharmaceuticals. Aquestive Therapeutics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than ARS Pharmaceuticals, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for ARS Pharmaceuticals and Aquestive Therapeutics, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| ARS Pharmaceuticals | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2.50 |
| Aquestive Therapeutics | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 2.88 |
ARS Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus target price of $26.40, suggesting a potential upside of 473.29%. Aquestive Therapeutics has a consensus target price of $9.17, suggesting a potential upside of 89.59%. Given ARS Pharmaceuticals’ higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe ARS Pharmaceuticals is more favorable than Aquestive Therapeutics.
Profitability
This table compares ARS Pharmaceuticals and Aquestive Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| ARS Pharmaceuticals | -184.24% | -256.67% | -69.63% |
| Aquestive Therapeutics | -144.63% | N/A | -52.40% |
Summary
Aquestive Therapeutics beats ARS Pharmaceuticals on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About ARS Pharmaceuticals
ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, develops treatments for severe allergic reactions. The company is developing neffy, a needle-free and low-dose intranasal epinephrine nasal spray for the emergency treatment of Type I allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. It serves healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers. ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.
About Aquestive Therapeutics
Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc. operates as a pharmaceutical company in the United States and internationally. The company markets Sympazan, an oral soluble film formulation of clobazam for the treatment of lennox-gastaut syndrome; Suboxone, a sublingual film formulation of buprenorphine and naloxone for the treatment of opioid dependence; Zuplenz, an oral soluble film formulation of ondansetron for the treatment of nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy and post-operative recovery; and Azstarys, a once-daily product for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Its proprietary product candidates comprise Libervant, a buccal soluble film formulation of diazepam for the treatment of seizures; KYNMOBI, a sublingual film formulation of apomorphine for the treatment of episodic off-periods in Parkinson's disease; and Exservan, an oral soluble film formulation of riluzole for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The company's proprietary pipeline of complex molecule product includes AQST-108, a sublingual film formulation delivering systemic epinephrine for the treatment of conditions other than anaphylaxis; and Anaphylm, an epinephrine sublingual film for the emergency treatment of allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. In addition, it develops Adrenaverse, an epinephrine prodrug platform. The company was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in Warren, New Jersey.
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