Reviewing Precision BioSciences (NASDAQ:DTIL) & Harpoon Therapeutics (NASDAQ:HARP)

Harpoon Therapeutics (NASDAQ:HARP – Get Rating) and Precision BioSciences (NASDAQ:DTIL – Get Rating) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, valuation, earnings and dividends.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Harpoon Therapeutics and Precision BioSciences’ 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	0.81	-$67.73 million	($1.74)	-0.47
Precision BioSciences	$25.10 million	3.37	-$111.64 million	($1.17)	-0.64

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

Profitability

This table compares Harpoon Therapeutics and Precision BioSciences’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Harpoon Therapeutics	-169.83%	-360.03%	-66.21%
Precision BioSciences	-355.12%	-148.72%	-42.34%

Risk and Volatility

Harpoon Therapeutics has a beta of 1.56, suggesting that its share price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Precision BioSciences has a beta of 1.39, suggesting that its share price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Harpoon Therapeutics and Precision BioSciences, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Harpoon Therapeutics	0	2	5	0	2.71
Precision BioSciences	0	3	1	0	2.25

Harpoon Therapeutics presently has a consensus target price of $4.71, indicating a potential upside of 482.15%. Precision BioSciences has a consensus target price of $4.00, indicating a potential upside of 437.63%. Given Harpoon Therapeutics’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Harpoon Therapeutics is more favorable than Precision BioSciences.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

65.5% of Harpoon Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 50.5% of Precision BioSciences shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.0% of Harpoon Therapeutics shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.0% of Precision BioSciences shares are owned 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

Harpoon Therapeutics beats Precision BioSciences on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Harpoon Therapeutics

(Get Rating)

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 Precision BioSciences

(Get Rating)

Precision BioSciences, Inc. is a biotechnology company, which engages in the development of genome editing technologies. It operates through the Therapeutics and Food segments. The Therapeutics segment focuses on the development of products in the field of immuno-oncology and of novel products outside immuno-oncology to treat human diseases. The Food segment applies ARCUS, the company’s proprietary genome editing platform, to develop food and nutrition products through collaboration agreements with consumer-facing companies. The company was founded by Derek N. Jantz, Jeff Smith, and Matthew R. Kane on January 26, 2006 and is headquartered in Durham, NC.