Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS – Get Free Report) and Upstream Bio (NASDAQ:UPB – Get Free Report) are both healthcare companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and valuation.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
93.9% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals shares are held by institutional investors. 1.8% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 16.5% of Upstream Bio shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Profitability
This table compares Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Upstream Bio’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Ionis Pharmaceuticals | -64.76% | -111.08% | -17.41% |
| Upstream Bio | -4,955.67% | -48.40% | -46.57% |
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Upstream Bio”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Ionis Pharmaceuticals | $944.00 million | 7.56 | -$381.39 million | ($3.46) | -12.41 |
| Upstream Bio | $2.85 million | 53.04 | -$143.44 million | ($2.90) | -0.95 |
Upstream Bio has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Ionis Pharmaceuticals. Ionis Pharmaceuticals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Upstream Bio, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk and Volatility
Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.38, indicating that its share price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Upstream Bio has a beta of 1.38, indicating that its share price is 38% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent recommendations for Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Upstream Bio, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Ionis Pharmaceuticals | 1 | 4 | 18 | 0 | 2.74 |
| Upstream Bio | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2.43 |
Ionis Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus target price of $89.14, suggesting a potential upside of 107.60%. Upstream Bio has a consensus target price of $29.67, suggesting a potential upside of 974.88%. Given Upstream Bio’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Upstream Bio is more favorable than Ionis Pharmaceuticals.
Summary
Upstream Bio beats Ionis Pharmaceuticals on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Ionis Pharmaceuticals
Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. discovers and develops RNA-targeted therapeutics in the United States. The company offers SPINRAZA for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in pediatric and adult patients; TEGSEDI, an antisense injection for the treatment of polyneuropathy caused by hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis in adults; and WAYLIVRA, an antisense medicine for treatment for familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) and familial partial lipodystrophy. It also develops medicines for various indications that are in phase 3 study, including Eplontersen as a monthly self-administered subcutaneous injection to treat all types of ATTR; Olezarsen for patients with FCS and severe hypertriglyceridemia (SHTG); Donidalorsen for patients with hereditary angioedema; ION363 for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Tofersen to inhibit the production of superoxide dismutase 1; Pelacarsen for patients with established cardiovascular disease and elevated lipoprotein(a); and Bepirovirsen to inhibit the production of viral proteins associated with hepatitis B virus. In addition, the company develops IONIS-FB-LRx to inhibit the production of complement factor B and the alternative complement pathway; and ION224 to reduce the production of diacylglycerol acyltransferase 2. It has a strategic collaboration with Biogen for the treatment of neurological disorders; and collaboration and license agreement with Metagenomi, Inc, AstraZeneca, Bayer AG, GlaxoSmithKline plc, Novartis, Roche, Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB, and PTC Therapeutics. The company was incorporated in 1989 and is based in Carlsbad, California.
About Upstream Bio
Upstream Bio, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, develops treatments for inflammatory diseases that focuses on severe respiratory disorders. It develops verekitug, a monoclonal antibody that targets and inhibits the thymic stromal lymphopoietin receptor. The company also develops therapies to treat severe asthma, chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Upstream Bio, Inc. was incorporated in 2021 and is based in Waltham, Massachusetts.
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