Contrasting Clene (NASDAQ:CLNN) and Zevra Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ZVRA)

Zevra Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ZVRA) and Clene (NASDAQ:CLNN) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends and profitability.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Zevra Therapeutics and Clene”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Zevra Therapeutics	$106.47 million	5.78	$83.23 million	$0.92	11.27
Clene	$200,000.00	251.36	-$26.17 million	($3.50)	-1.11

Zevra Therapeutics has higher revenue and earnings than Clene. Clene is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Zevra Therapeutics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Zevra Therapeutics and Clene, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Zevra Therapeutics	0	1	9	1	3.00
Clene	1	0	6	0	2.71

Zevra Therapeutics currently has a consensus target price of $27.14, suggesting a potential upside of 161.85%. Clene has a consensus target price of $34.00, suggesting a potential upside of 778.55%. Given Clene’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Clene is more favorable than Zevra Therapeutics.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

35.0% of Zevra Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 23.3% of Clene shares are held by institutional investors. 3.7% of Zevra Therapeutics shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 28.3% of Clene shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Zevra Therapeutics and Clene’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Zevra Therapeutics	42.82%	54.54%	34.15%
Clene	-20,063.96%	N/A	-137.04%

Risk and Volatility

Zevra Therapeutics has a beta of 0.98, indicating that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Clene has a beta of 0.91, indicating that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Zevra Therapeutics beats Clene on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Zevra Therapeutics

Zevra Therapeutics, Inc. discovers and develops various proprietary prodrugs to treat serious medical conditions in the United States. The company develops its products through Ligand Activated Therapy platform. Its lead product candidate is KP1077, consisting of KP1077IH, which is under Phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia, and KP1077N, which is under Phase ½ clinical trial to treat narcolepsy. The company is also developing Celiprolol, a prodrug product candidate that is under Phase 1/2 clinical trial for the treatment of vascular Ehlers Danlos syndrome. In addition, it offers AZSTARYS, a once-daily treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in patients aged six years and older; OLPRUVA to treat urea cycle disorders; and Arimoclomol for the treatment of niemann pick disease type C, an ultra-rare neurodegenerative lysosomal storage disorder. The company has collaboration and license agreement with Commave Therapeutics SA to develop, manufacture and commercialize the company’s product candidates containing SDX and d-methylphenidate; and license agreement with Acer and Relief Therapeutics, Inc. to develop and commercialize rights for OLPRUVA. The company was formerly known as KemPharm, Inc. and changed its name to Zevra Therapeutics, Inc. in February 2023. Zevra Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Celebration, Florida.

About Clene

Clene Inc., a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel clean-surfaced nanotechnology (CSN) therapeutics. Its lead drug candidate is CNM-Au8, which is being studied in various clinical trials, including a completed Phase 2 platform trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of CNM-Au8 in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); completed Phase 2 proof of concept clinical trial in patients with early symptomatic ALS; completed two open-label investigator blinded Phase 2 clinical trials on the brain's energy metabolites; completed Phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of visual pathway deficits in chronic optic neuropathy for remyelination in stable relapsing Multiple Sclerosis; and a second Phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of patients with Parkinson's Diseases. The company also develops CNM-AgZn17, a gel polymer suspension of silver and zinc ions that is being developed for the treatment of infectious diseases and to support wound healing; and CNM-ZnAg, a broad-spectrum antiviral and antibacterial agent to treat infection disease and to provide immune support for symptom resolution. In addition, it markets and distributes dietary supplements comprising rMetx, an aqueous zinc-silver ion dietary supplement; and KHC46, an aqueous gold dietary supplement of very low-concentration Au nanoparticles. The company is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.