Harpoon Therapeutics (NASDAQ:HARP – Get Rating) and Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX – Get Rating) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, earnings and institutional ownership.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
65.5% of Harpoon Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 45.7% of Novavax shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.0% of Harpoon Therapeutics shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.1% of Novavax shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings for Harpoon Therapeutics and Novavax, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Harpoon Therapeutics | 0 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 2.78 |
| Novavax | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2.00 |
Profitability
This table compares Harpoon Therapeutics and Novavax’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Harpoon Therapeutics | -212.23% | -299.91% | -67.97% |
| Novavax | -33.20% | N/A | -26.36% |
Volatility & Risk
Harpoon Therapeutics has a beta of 1.56, indicating that its share price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Novavax has a beta of 1.73, indicating that its share price is 73% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Harpoon Therapeutics and Novavax’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Harpoon Therapeutics | $31.92 million | 0.65 | -$67.73 million | ($2.05) | -0.27 |
| Novavax | $1.98 billion | 0.31 | -$657.94 million | ($8.40) | -0.84 |
Harpoon Therapeutics has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Novavax. Novavax is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Harpoon Therapeutics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Harpoon Therapeutics beats Novavax on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Harpoon Therapeutics
Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage immunotherapy company, which engages in the development of antibodies. It focuses on the research of novel class of T cell engagers that harness the power of the body’s immune system to treat patients suffering from cancer and other diseases. The firm utilizes its proprietary Tri-specific T cell Activating Construct platform to create a pipeline of novel TriTACs for the treatment of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. The company was founded by Patrick A. Baeuerle, Luke B. Evnin, and Jeanmarie Guenot on March 19, 2015 and is headquartered in South San Francisco, CA.
About Novavax
Novavax, Inc. Is a biotechnology company, which engages in the discovery, development, and commercialization of recombinant vaccines. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, MD.
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