SQZ Biotechnologies (NYSE:SQZ) and Atyr PHARMA (NASDAQ:ATYR) Financial Contrast

Atyr PHARMA (NASDAQ:ATYR) and SQZ Biotechnologies (NYSE:SQZ) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, dividends, risk, valuation, institutional ownership and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Atyr PHARMA and SQZ Biotechnologies, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Atyr PHARMA	0	0	4	0	3.00
SQZ Biotechnologies	0	0	0	0	0.00

Atyr PHARMA presently has a consensus price target of $19.25, indicating a potential upside of 431.77%. Given Atyr PHARMA’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Atyr PHARMA is more favorable than SQZ Biotechnologies.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

61.7% of Atyr PHARMA shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 38.5% of SQZ Biotechnologies shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.7% of Atyr PHARMA shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 16.0% of SQZ Biotechnologies shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Atyr PHARMA and SQZ Biotechnologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Atyr PHARMA	N/A	-79.44%	-59.16%
SQZ Biotechnologies	-369.96%	-119.83%	-59.90%

Risk and Volatility

Atyr PHARMA has a beta of 1.07, suggesting that its stock price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SQZ Biotechnologies has a beta of 2.34, suggesting that its stock price is 134% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Atyr PHARMA and SQZ Biotechnologies”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Atyr PHARMA	$235,000.00	1,293.06	-$50.39 million	($0.94)	-3.85
SQZ Biotechnologies	$18.16 million	0.05	-$79.46 million	($2.61)	-0.01

Atyr PHARMA has higher earnings, but lower revenue than SQZ Biotechnologies. Atyr PHARMA is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SQZ Biotechnologies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Atyr PHARMA beats SQZ Biotechnologies on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Atyr PHARMA

aTyr Pharma, Inc., a biotherapeutics company, engages in the discovery and development of medicines based on novel immunological pathways in the United States. Its lead therapeutic candidate is efzofitimod, a selective modulator of NRP2 that is in Phase III clinical trial for pulmonary sarcoidosis; and in Phase 1b/2a clinical trial for treatment of other interstitial lung diseases (ILDs), such as chronic hypersensitivity pneumonitis and connective tissue disease related ILD. The company is developing ATYR0101, a fusion protein derived from a domain of aspartyl-tRNA synthetase that is in preclinical development for the treatment of fibrosis; and ATYR0750, a domain of alanyl-tRNA synthetase for the treatment of liver disorders. It has collaboration and license agreement with Kyorin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for the development and commercialization of efzofitimod for ILDs in Japan. aTyr Pharma, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

About SQZ Biotechnologies

SQZ Biotechnologies Company, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, develops cell therapies for patients with cancer, autoimmune, infectious diseases, and other serious conditions. Its lead product candidate is SQZ-PBMC-HPV, from its SQZ Antigen Presenting Cells platform, which is in a Phase I clinical trial as a monotherapy and in combination with immuno-oncology agents for the treatment of HPV16+ advanced or metastatic solid tumors, including cervical, head-and-neck, anal, penile, vulvar, and vaginal cancer. The company also develops SQZ-AAC-HPV, which is in a Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of HPV16+ advanced or metastatic solid tumors in monotherapy and in combinations with immune-oncology agents. Its additional platforms in development are SQZ Activating Antigen Carriers; and SQZ Tolerizing Antigen Carriers. The Company was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in Watertown, Massachusetts.