Financial Analysis: BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) and Zenas BioPharma (NASDAQ:ZBIO)

Zenas BioPharma (NASDAQ:ZBIO) and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) are both healthcare companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, risk and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Zenas BioPharma and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Zenas BioPharma	N/A	-122.45%	-58.04%
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals	-40.90%	-86.89%	66.37%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Zenas BioPharma and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Zenas BioPharma	$10.00 million	180.03	-$377.74 million	($8.99)	-3.07
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals	$874.84 million	2.41	$263.86 million	($1.50)	-5.49

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has higher revenue and earnings than Zenas BioPharma. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Zenas BioPharma, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

Zenas BioPharma has a beta of -0.9, meaning that its share price is 190% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.55, meaning that its share price is 45% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Zenas BioPharma and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Zenas BioPharma	1	2	6	0	2.56
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals	1	4	6	0	2.45

Zenas BioPharma currently has a consensus target price of $46.71, indicating a potential upside of 69.13%. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has a consensus target price of $19.44, indicating a potential upside of 135.98%. Given BioCryst Pharmaceuticals’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe BioCryst Pharmaceuticals is more favorable than Zenas BioPharma.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

85.9% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals shares are held by institutional investors. 22.0% of Zenas BioPharma shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.8% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals beats Zenas BioPharma on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Zenas BioPharma

Zenas BioPharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage global biopharmaceutical company, which engages in the development and commercialization of transformative immunology-based therapies for patients. The company was founded by Lonnie O. Moulder Jr on November 12, 2019 and is headquartered in Waltham, MA.

About BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company, develops oral small-molecule and protein therapeutics to treat rare diseases. The company markets peramivir injection, an intravenous neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment of acute uncomplicated influenza under the RAPIVAB, RAPIACTA, and PERAMIFLU names; and ORLADEYO, an oral serine protease inhibitor to treat hereditary angioedema. It is also developing BCX10013, an oral factor D inhibitor for complement-mediated diseases. The company has collaborations and in-license relationships with the Torii Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.; Seqirus UK Limited; Shionogi & Co., Ltd.; Green Cross Corporation; National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority; the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; and The University of Alabama at Birmingham, as well as Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Industrial Research, Ltd. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina.