Head-To-Head Survey: Equillium (NASDAQ:EQ) and KALA BIO (NASDAQ:KALA)

KALA BIO (NASDAQ:KALA) and Equillium (NASDAQ:EQ) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares KALA BIO and Equillium’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
KALA BIO	N/A	-448.61%	-69.37%
Equillium	-10.05%	-20.68%	-10.77%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for KALA BIO and Equillium, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
KALA BIO	0	0	2	0	3.00
Equillium	0	2	1	0	2.33

KALA BIO presently has a consensus target price of $15.00, suggesting a potential upside of 300.00%. Equillium has a consensus target price of $3.00, suggesting a potential upside of 614.29%. Given Equillium’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Equillium is more favorable than KALA BIO.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares KALA BIO and Equillium”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
KALA BIO	$3.89 million	6.22	-$42.20 million	($11.03)	-0.34
Equillium	$41.10 million	0.37	-$13.34 million	($0.23)	-1.83

Equillium has higher revenue and earnings than KALA BIO. Equillium is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than KALA BIO, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

24.6% of KALA BIO shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 27.0% of Equillium shares are held by institutional investors. 8.3% of KALA BIO shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 30.3% of Equillium shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

KALA BIO has a beta of -1.91, meaning that its stock price is 291% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equillium has a beta of 1.87, meaning that its stock price is 87% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Equillium beats KALA BIO on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About KALA BIO

KALA BIO, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the research, development, and commercialization of innovative therapies for rare and severe eye diseases in the United States. The company's product candidates include KPI-012, which is in Phase 2b clinical trial for the treatment of persistent corneal epithelial defects. Its preclinical development product, including KPI-014 for the treatment of rare inherited retinal diseases. The company was formerly known as Kala Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and changed its name to KALA BIO, Inc. in August 2023. KALA BIO, Inc. was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Arlington, Massachusetts.

About Equillium

Equillium, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, develops and sells products to treat severe autoimmune and inflammatory, or immuno-inflammatory disorders with unmet medical need. The company's lead product candidate is itolizumab (EQ001), a first-in-class monoclonal antibody that targets the immune checkpoint receptor CD6, which is in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of acute graft-versus-host disease; completed Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of ulcerative colitis; and Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of lupus nephritis. It also develops EQ101 completed phase 1/2 for treatment of cutaneous T cell lymphoma and alopecia areata; and EQ302 to treat gastrointestinal indications. In addition, it serves dermatology, gastroenterology, rheumatology, hematology, transplant science, oncology, and pulmonology area. The company was formerly known as Attenuate Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. and changed its name to Equillium, Inc. in May 2017. Equillium, Inc. was incorporated in 2017 and is headquartered in La Jolla, California.