Zevra Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ZVRA – Get Free Report) and Clene (NASDAQ:CLNN – Get Free Report) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations and profitability.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current ratings 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 possible upside, analysts plainly believe Clene is more favorable than Zevra Therapeutics.
Volatility and Risk
Zevra Therapeutics has a beta of 0.98, meaning that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Clene has a beta of 0.91, meaning that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.
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% |
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Zevra Therapeutics and Clene”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) 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.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
35.0% of Zevra Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 23.3% of Clene shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.7% of Zevra Therapeutics shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 28.3% of Clene shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
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.
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