Head to Head Review: BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) & Achilles Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACHL)

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX – Get Rating) and Achilles Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACHL – Get Rating) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, profitability, earnings and institutional ownership.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares BioCryst Pharmaceuticals and Achilles Therapeutics’ top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals	$157.17 million	10.69	-$184.06 million	($1.07)	-8.46
Achilles Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	-$61.10 million	($1.69)	-1.47

Achilles Therapeutics has lower revenue, but higher earnings than BioCryst Pharmaceuticals. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Achilles Therapeutics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares BioCryst Pharmaceuticals and Achilles Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals	-103.16%	N/A	-60.24%
Achilles Therapeutics	N/A	-21.83%	-20.01%

Volatility and Risk

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 2.51, meaning that its stock price is 151% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Achilles Therapeutics has a beta of 0.25, meaning that its stock price is 75% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings for BioCryst Pharmaceuticals and Achilles Therapeutics, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals	0	5	5	0	2.50
Achilles Therapeutics	0	0	2	0	3.00

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus price target of $18.36, indicating a potential upside of 102.91%. Achilles Therapeutics has a consensus price target of $17.00, indicating a potential upside of 585.48%. Given Achilles Therapeutics’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Achilles Therapeutics is more favorable than BioCryst Pharmaceuticals.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

63.9% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 67.6% of Achilles Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 4.8% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Achilles Therapeutics beats BioCryst Pharmaceuticals on 7 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (Get Rating)

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company, discovers novel, oral, and small-molecule medicines. 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 BCX9930, an oral factor D inhibitor, which is in Phase II clinical trial for complement-mediated diseases; BCX9250, an oral activin receptor-like kinase-2 inhibitor that is in Phase I clinical trial to treat fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva; and Galidesivir, a RNA dependent-RNA polymerase inhibitor, which is in Phase I clinical trial to treat various RNA viruses, including Marburg, Yellow Fever, Ebola, and Zika. The company has collaborations and in-license relationships with the Torii Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.; Seqirus UK Limited; Shionogi & Co., Ltd.; Green Cross Corporation; Mundipharma International Holdings Limited; 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 Achilles Therapeutics (Get Rating)

Achilles Therapeutics Plc, a clinical stage immuno-oncology biopharmaceutical company, develops precision T cell therapies to treat various solid tumors. The company's lead product candidates include CHIRON, which is in Phase I/IIa clinical trial for use in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer; and THETIS, a product candidate in Phase I/IIa clinical trial for use in the treatment of metastatic or recurrent melanoma. It is also developing products for use in the treatment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, renal cell carcinoma, triple negative breast cancer, and bladder cancer. The company was formerly known as Achilles TX Limited and changed its name to Achilles Therapeutics Plc in February 2021. The company was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

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