Comparing Acura Pharmaceuticals (OTCMKTS:ACUR) and Supernus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SUPN)

Acura Pharmaceuticals (OTCMKTS:ACUR) and Supernus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SUPN) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation and risk.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Acura Pharmaceuticals and Supernus Pharmaceuticals”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Acura Pharmaceuticals	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Supernus Pharmaceuticals	$661.82 million	2.84	$73.86 million	$1.11	30.23

Supernus Pharmaceuticals has higher revenue and earnings than Acura Pharmaceuticals.

Volatility & Risk

Acura Pharmaceuticals has a beta of -2.43, indicating that its share price is 343% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Supernus Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.7, indicating that its share price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings for Acura Pharmaceuticals and Supernus Pharmaceuticals, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Acura Pharmaceuticals	0	0	0	0	0.00
Supernus Pharmaceuticals	0	1	2	0	2.67

Supernus Pharmaceuticals has a consensus target price of $39.00, indicating a potential upside of 16.21%. Given Supernus Pharmaceuticals’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Supernus Pharmaceuticals is more favorable than Acura Pharmaceuticals.

Profitability

This table compares Acura Pharmaceuticals and Supernus Pharmaceuticals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Acura Pharmaceuticals	N/A	N/A	N/A
Supernus Pharmaceuticals	9.27%	12.23%	9.17%

Summary

Supernus Pharmaceuticals beats Acura Pharmaceuticals on 8 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Acura Pharmaceuticals

Acura Pharmaceuticals, Inc., an innovative drug delivery company, engages in the research, development, and commercialization of technologies and products to address safe use of medications in the United States. It offers Oxaydo tablets, a Schedule II narcotic indicated for the management of acute and chronic moderate to severe pain; and Nexafed products, which are pseudoephedrine and acetaminophen tablets that are used as nasal decongestants in various non-prescription and prescription cold, sinus, and allergy products. Acura Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has collaboration and license agreements with Egalet US, Inc. and Egalet Ltd. to manufacture and commercialize Oxaydo products worldwide; and development and commercialization agreement with Abuse Deterrent Pharma, LLC to develop LTX-03, an immediate-release tablets utilizing LIMITx technology. The company was formerly known as Halsey Drug Co., Inc. The company was incorporated in 1935 and is based in Palatine, Illinois. Acura Pharmaceuticals, Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Abuse Deterrent Pharma, LLC.

About Supernus Pharmaceuticals

Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of products for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) diseases in the United States. The company's commercial products are Trokendi XR, an extended release topiramate product indicated for the treatment of epilepsy, as well as for the prophylaxis of migraine headache; and Oxtellar XR, an extended release oxcarbazepine for the monotherapy treatment of partial onset seizures in adults and children between 6 to 17 years of age. It also offers comprise Qelbree, a novel non-stimulant indicated for the treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults and pediatric patients 6 years and older; APOKYN for the acute intermittent treatment of hypomobility or off episodes in patients with advanced Parkinson's Disease (PD); XADAGO for treating levodopa/carbidopa in patients with PD experiencing off episodes; MYOBLOC, a Type B toxin product indicated for the treatment of cervical dystonia and sialorrhea in adults; GOCOVRI for the treatment of dyskinesia in patients with PD; and Osmolex ER for the treatment of Parkinson's disease and drug-induced extrapyramidal reaction in adult patients. In addition, the company's product candidates include SPN-830, a late-stage drug/device combination product candidate for the treatment of off episodes in PD patients; SPN-817, a novel first-in-class selective acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, which is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of epilepsy; SPN-820, a product candidate in Phase II clinical trials for treating resistant depression; SPN-443, a preclinical product for the treatment of ADHD/CNS; and SPN-446 for narcolepsy and SPN-448 for the treatment of CNS which is in discovery stage. It markets and sells its products through pharmaceutical wholesalers, specialty pharmacies, and distributors. Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Rockville, Maryland.