Contrasting Alpha Teknova (NASDAQ:TKNO) and Rapid Micro Biosystems (NASDAQ:RPID)

Rapid Micro Biosystems (NASDAQ:RPID) and Alpha Teknova (NASDAQ:TKNO) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, risk and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Rapid Micro Biosystems and Alpha Teknova’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rapid Micro Biosystems	-145.56%	-177.04%	-73.12%
Alpha Teknova	-38.37%	-24.94%	-16.53%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Rapid Micro Biosystems and Alpha Teknova, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rapid Micro Biosystems	1	0	2	0	2.33
Alpha Teknova	1	1	2	0	2.25

Rapid Micro Biosystems presently has a consensus target price of $6.00, suggesting a potential upside of 259.28%. Alpha Teknova has a consensus target price of $7.50, suggesting a potential upside of 3.88%. Given Rapid Micro Biosystems’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Rapid Micro Biosystems is more favorable than Alpha Teknova.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Rapid Micro Biosystems and Alpha Teknova”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rapid Micro Biosystems	$33.59 million	2.49	-$47.12 million	($1.12)	-1.49
Alpha Teknova	$40.52 million	9.55	-$17.26 million	($0.31)	-23.29

Alpha Teknova has higher revenue and earnings than Rapid Micro Biosystems. Alpha Teknova is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Rapid Micro Biosystems, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

52.6% of Rapid Micro Biosystems shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 13.8% of Alpha Teknova shares are owned by institutional investors. 12.7% of Rapid Micro Biosystems shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 13.2% of Alpha Teknova shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Rapid Micro Biosystems has a beta of 1.44, suggesting that its share price is 44% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Alpha Teknova has a beta of 0.64, suggesting that its share price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Alpha Teknova beats Rapid Micro Biosystems on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rapid Micro Biosystems

Rapid Micro Biosystems, Inc., a life sciences technology company, provides products for the detection of microbial contamination in the manufacture of pharmaceutical, medical devices, and personal care products in the United States, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, and internationally. The company offers Growth Direct platform, which includes Growth Direct system, proprietary consumables, lab information management system connection software, and customer support and validation services. Its platform automates and modernizes the manual microbial quality control (MQC) testing workflows for therapeutic modalities, such as biologics, vaccines, cell and gene therapies, and sterile injectables. The company also provides onsite technical training services. Its solutions are used in environmental monitoring, water, bioburden, and sterility release testing applications. In addition, the company offers RMBNucleus software for the Growth Direct system; RMBNucleus Mold Alarm signals at the first sign of mold detection; RMBNucleus Central Manager portal streamlines coordination of multiple instruments; and Growth Direct LIMS connection software. Rapid Micro Biosystems, Inc. was formerly known as Genomic Profiling Systems, Inc. and changed its name to Rapid Micro Biosystems, Inc. in January 2007. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Lowell, Massachusetts.

About Alpha Teknova

Alpha Teknova, Inc. produces critical reagents for the research, discovery, development, and commercialization of novel therapies, vaccines, and molecular diagnostics in the United States and internationally. The company offers pre-poured media plates for cell growth and cloning; liquid cell culture media and supplements for cellular expansion; and molecular biology reagents for sample manipulation, resuspension, and purification. It provides lab essentials which provides chemical formulations for use in biological research and drug discovery; and clinical solutions, a custom product used in the development and production of protein therapies, gene therapies, mRNA vaccines, and diagnostic kits. The company serves its products to life sciences market, including pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, contract development and manufacturing organizations, in vitro diagnostic franchises, as well as academic and government research institutions. Alpha Teknova, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Hollister, California.