Reviewing Praxis Precision Medicines (NASDAQ:PRAX) & Aytu BioPharma (NASDAQ:AYTU)

Praxis Precision Medicines (NASDAQ:PRAX) and Aytu BioPharma (NASDAQ:AYTU) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

67.8% of Praxis Precision Medicines shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 33.5% of Aytu BioPharma shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of Praxis Precision Medicines shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.8% of Aytu BioPharma shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Praxis Precision Medicines and Aytu BioPharma, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Praxis Precision Medicines	0	1	8	0	2.89
Aytu BioPharma	0	0	0	0	0.00

Praxis Precision Medicines presently has a consensus price target of $146.33, suggesting a potential upside of 82.53%. Given Praxis Precision Medicines’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Praxis Precision Medicines is more favorable than Aytu BioPharma.

Profitability

This table compares Praxis Precision Medicines and Aytu BioPharma’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Praxis Precision Medicines	-9,409.22%	-54.86%	-50.52%
Aytu BioPharma	-8.28%	-21.89%	-5.37%

Risk and Volatility

Praxis Precision Medicines has a beta of 2.67, meaning that its stock price is 167% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Aytu BioPharma has a beta of -1.4, meaning that its stock price is 240% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Praxis Precision Medicines and Aytu BioPharma”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Praxis Precision Medicines	$2.45 million	609.95	-$123.28 million	($10.30)	-7.78
Aytu BioPharma	$79.76 million	0.12	-$15.84 million	($1.23)	-1.31

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

Summary

Aytu BioPharma beats Praxis Precision Medicines on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Praxis Precision Medicines

Praxis Precision Medicines, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of therapies for central nervous system disorders characterized by neuronal excitation-inhibition imbalance. It is developing ulixacaltamide, a small molecule inhibitor of T-type calcium channels that is in Phase III clinical trial for the treatment of essential tremor; PRAX-562 for the treatment of pediatric patients with developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEE); and PRAX-628 to treat focal epilepsy. The company also develops PRAX-222 for the treatment of pediatric patients with early-onset SCN2A-DEE; PRAX-020 to treat KCNT1 related epilepsies; PRAX-080 for the treatment of PCDH19; and PRAX-090 and PRAX-100 for SYNGAP1 and SCN2A-LoF. It has a license agreement with RogCon Inc.; a research collaboration and license agreement with Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; a strategic collaboration and license agreement with UCB Biopharma SRL; and collaboration with The Florey Institute to develop three novel ASOs. The company was incorporated in 2015 and is based in Boston, Massachusetts.

About Aytu BioPharma

Aytu Biopharma, Inc., a commercial-stage pharmaceutical company, focuses on commercializing novel therapeutics and consumer healthcare products the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments: Rx segment and Consumer Health segment. The Rx segment offers prescription products for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), including Adzenys XR-ODT for patients from six years and older, and Cotempla XR-ODT for patients from six to seventeen years old. The segment also provides pediatric prescription product portfolio comprising Karbinal ER, an extended-release carbinoxamine (antihistamine) suspension indicated to treat numerous allergic conditions for patients two years and above; and Poly-Vi-Flor and Tri-Vi-Flor complementary prescription fluoride-based multi-vitamin products containing combinations of fluoride and vitamins in liquid and chewable tablet form for infants and children with fluoride deficiency. The Consumer Health segment is involved in the commercialization of over-the-counter medicines, personal care products, and dietary supplements in various categories, such as hair loss, digestive health, urological health, diabetes management, and allergy. The segment offers Regoxidine – for Men and Women, a proprietary over-the-counter aerosol foam that works to treat hair loss in both men and women; and OmepraCareDR and EsomepraCareDR, acid reducers for the treatment of frequent heartburn. It also engages in the development of AR101 (enzastaurin), an orally available investigational first-in-class small molecule, serine/threonine kinase inhibitor targeting the treatment of vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. The company was formerly known as Aytu BioScience, Inc. and changed its name to Aytu Biopharma, Inc. in March 2021. Aytu Biopharma, Inc. is based in Denver, Colorado.