Theravance Biopharma (NASDAQ:TBPH – Get Free Report) and Lipocine (NASDAQ:LPCN – Get Free Report) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, earnings and dividends.
Profitability
This table compares Theravance Biopharma and Lipocine’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Theravance Biopharma | 51.58% | -0.77% | -0.46% |
| Lipocine | -755.39% | -64.75% | -57.62% |
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares Theravance Biopharma and Lipocine”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Theravance Biopharma | $104.31 million | 8.48 | $105.89 million | $1.01 | 16.86 |
| Lipocine | $1.57 million | 8.03 | -$9.63 million | ($1.79) | -0.85 |
Theravance Biopharma has higher revenue and earnings than Lipocine. Lipocine is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Theravance Biopharma, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Theravance Biopharma and Lipocine, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Theravance Biopharma | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Lipocine | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
Theravance Biopharma presently has a consensus target price of $19.40, indicating a potential upside of 13.92%. Lipocine has a consensus target price of $4.00, indicating a potential upside of 161.61%. Given Lipocine’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Lipocine is more favorable than Theravance Biopharma.
Volatility & Risk
Theravance Biopharma has a beta of 0.25, suggesting that its stock price is 75% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lipocine has a beta of 0.4, suggesting that its stock price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
99.1% of Theravance Biopharma shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 9.1% of Lipocine shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.6% of Theravance Biopharma shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.7% of Lipocine shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
Theravance Biopharma beats Lipocine on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Theravance Biopharma
Theravance Biopharma, Inc. is a diversified biopharmaceutical company primarily focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of organ-selective medicines. Its purpose is to pioneer a new generation of small molecule drugs designed to better meet patient needs. Its research is focused in the areas of inflammation and immunology.
In pursuit of its purpose, Theravance Biopharma applies insights and innovation at each stage of its business and utilizes its internal capabilities and those of partners around the world. The Company applies organ-selective expertise to target disease biologically, to discover and develop medicines that may expand the therapeutic index with the goal of maximizing efficacy and limiting systemic side effects. These efforts leverage years of experience in developing lung-selective medicines to treat respiratory disease, including FDA-approved YUPELRI® (revefenacin) inhalation solution indicated for the maintenance treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Its pipeline of internally discovered programs is targeted to address significant patient needs.
Theravance Biopharma has an economic interest in potential future payments from Glaxo Group Limited or one of its affiliates (GSK) pursuant to its agreements with Innoviva, Inc. relating to certain programs, including TRELEGY.
For more information, please visit www.theravance.com.
About Lipocine
Lipocine Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the research and development for the delivery of drugs for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Its lead product candidate is TLANDO, an oral testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) comprising testosterone undecanoate. The company's pipeline candidates also include TLANDO XR a candidate for oral TRT for once daily dosing, which has completed Phase 2b clinical study; LPCN 1148, an oral prodrug of bioidentical testosterone, being developed for the treatment of cirrhosis, currently under Phase 2 clinical studies; LPCN 1154, An oral neurosteroid, being developed for the treatment of postpartum depression, currently under Phase 2 studies; LPCN 2101, a NAS candidate, for women with epilepsy; and LPCN 2203 for essential tremor. It is also involved in the development of LPCN 1144, an oral prodrug of bioidentical testosterone for the treatment of pre-cirrhotic non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, which has completed Phase 2 testing; and LPCN 1107, an oral product candidate of 17-alpha-hydroxy progesterone caproate product, currently under Phase 3 studies for the prevention of recurrent preterm birth. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.
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