Comparing Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) & PDS Biotechnology (NASDAQ:PDSB)

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) and PDS Biotechnology (NASDAQ:PDSB) are both medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and earnings.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Viking Therapeutics and PDS Biotechnology, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Viking Therapeutics	2	2	7	3	2.79
PDS Biotechnology	1	0	2	0	2.33

Viking Therapeutics currently has a consensus price target of $89.36, indicating a potential upside of 214.22%. PDS Biotechnology has a consensus price target of $9.00, indicating a potential upside of 1,158.74%. Given PDS Biotechnology’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe PDS Biotechnology is more favorable than Viking Therapeutics.

Profitability

This table compares Viking Therapeutics and PDS Biotechnology’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Viking Therapeutics	N/A	-29.35%	-28.41%
PDS Biotechnology	N/A	-208.95%	-83.27%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

76.0% of Viking Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 26.8% of PDS Biotechnology shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.1% of Viking Therapeutics shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 9.2% of PDS Biotechnology shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Viking Therapeutics has a beta of 0.75, meaning that its share price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PDS Biotechnology has a beta of 1.21, meaning that its share price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Viking Therapeutics and PDS Biotechnology”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Viking Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	-$109.96 million	($2.12)	-13.42
PDS Biotechnology	N/A	N/A	-$37.61 million	($0.82)	-0.87

Viking Therapeutics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than PDS Biotechnology, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

About Viking Therapeutics

Viking Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of novel therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. The company's lead drug candidate is VK2809, an orally available tissue and receptor-subtype selective agonist of the thyroid hormone receptor beta (TRß), which is in Phase IIb clinical trials to treat patients with biopsy-confirmed non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, as well as NAFLD. It also develops VK5211, an orally available non-steroidal selective androgen receptor modulator that is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of patients recovering from non-elective hip fracture surgery; VK0612, an orally available Phase IIb-ready drug candidate for type 2 diabetes; VK2735, a novel dual agonist of the glucagon-like peptide, which is in Phase 1 SAD/MAD clinical trial, and VK0214, an orally available tissue and receptor-subtype selective agonist of the TRß for X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy. The company was incorporated in 2012 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

About PDS Biotechnology

PDS Biotechnology Corporation, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, developing a pipeline of targeted cancer immunotherapies in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is PDS0101 (HPV16), which is in Phase II clinical trial provides a first line treatment for the recurrent/metastatic head and neck cancer, and human papillomavirus associated malignancies. It also develops various product candidates, which are in preclinical trials, including PDS0102, an investigational immunotherapy utilizing tumor-associated and immunologically active T cell receptor gamma alternate reading framed protein (TARP) for treating prostate and breast cancers; and PDS0103 for ovarian, colorectal, lung, and breast cancers. In addition, the company is developing PDS01ADC, a novel investigational Interleukin 12 fused antibody-drug conjugate that enhances the proliferation, potency, and longevity of T cells in the tumor microenvironment; and PDS0104, a novel investigational Tyrosinase-related Protein 2 targeted immunotherapy that stimulates a potent targeted T cell attack against melanoma. Further, the company provides PDS0202, a novel investigational influenza vaccine that generates broad and robust antibody and T cell responses that provide protection against continually evolving strains of seasonal flu and potentially emerging pandemic flu. It has a license and collaboration agreements with National Institutes of Health, Merck Eprova AG, The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and MSD International GmbH. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Princeton, New Jersey.