Analyzing Exicure (NASDAQ:XCUR) and Applied Therapeutics (NASDAQ:APLT)

Applied Therapeutics (NASDAQ:APLT) and Exicure (NASDAQ:XCUR) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation, risk and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

98.3% of Applied Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 42.8% of Exicure shares are held by institutional investors. 1.6% of Applied Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 52.8% of Exicure shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Applied Therapeutics and Exicure’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Applied Therapeutics	N/A	-340.84%	-175.00%
Exicure	N/A	-237.91%	-61.98%

Volatility and Risk

Applied Therapeutics has a beta of 2.08, indicating that its stock price is 108% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Exicure has a beta of 3.63, indicating that its stock price is 263% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Applied Therapeutics and Exicure, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Applied Therapeutics	1	2	0	0	1.67
Exicure	1	0	0	0	1.00

Applied Therapeutics presently has a consensus price target of $1.00, suggesting a potential upside of 870.87%. Given Applied Therapeutics’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Applied Therapeutics is more favorable than Exicure.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Applied Therapeutics and Exicure”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Applied Therapeutics	$1.00 million	15.86	-$105.62 million	($0.10)	-1.03
Exicure	$500,000.00	14.93	-$4.95 million	($1.32)	-0.86

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

About Applied Therapeutics

Applied Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of a pipeline of novel product candidates against validated molecular targets in indications of high unmet medical need in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is AT-007 (also called govorestat) that has completed phase 3 for the treatment of galactosemia in healthy volunteers and adults, in pediatric clinical study for the treatment of galactosemia in kids, for treating enzyme sorbitol dehydrogenase, and for the treatment of phosphomannomutase enzyme-CDG. It also develops AT-001 (also called caficrestat) that is in phase 3 clinical trials to treat diabetic cardiomyopathy, as well as for the treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathy; and AT-003, which is in preclinical studies for the treatment diabetic retinopathy. The company has exclusive license and supply agreement with Mercury Pharma Group Limited to commercialize drug products containing AT-007. Applied Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 2016 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

About Exicure

Exicure, Inc., an early-stage biotechnology company, develops nucleic acid therapies targeting ribonucleic acid against validated targets. The company's preclinical candidate includes SCN9A that is in preclinical studies for the treatment of chronic pain. It also develops immuno-oncology therapeutics based on its proprietary SNA technology. Exicure, Inc. was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.