Head to Head Contrast: Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) and electroCore (NASDAQ:ECOR)

Akebia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AKBA) and electroCore (NASDAQ:ECOR) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Akebia Therapeutics and electroCore”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Akebia Therapeutics	$160.18 million	2.25	-$69.41 million	($0.07)	-19.43
electroCore	$25.18 million	2.37	-$11.89 million	($1.71)	-4.37

electroCore has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Akebia Therapeutics. Akebia Therapeutics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than electroCore, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Akebia Therapeutics and electroCore’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Akebia Therapeutics	-7.07%	-137.67%	-5.13%
electroCore	-47.46%	-447.87%	-73.83%

Risk & Volatility

Akebia Therapeutics has a beta of 0.35, indicating that its share price is 65% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, electroCore has a beta of 0.34, indicating that its share price is 66% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Akebia Therapeutics and electroCore, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Akebia Therapeutics	1	1	4	1	2.71
electroCore	1	0	2	0	2.33

Akebia Therapeutics presently has a consensus price target of $6.00, indicating a potential upside of 341.18%. electroCore has a consensus price target of $25.50, indicating a potential upside of 241.37%. Given Akebia Therapeutics’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Akebia Therapeutics is more favorable than electroCore.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

33.9% of Akebia Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 26.7% of electroCore shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.0% of Akebia Therapeutics shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 13.8% of electroCore shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Akebia Therapeutics beats electroCore on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Akebia Therapeutics

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapeutics for patients with kidney diseases. The company’s lead product investigational product candidate is Vafseo (vadadustat), an oral hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase, which is in Phase III development for the treatment of anemia due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) in dialysis-dependent and non-dialysis dependent patients. It offers Auryxia, a ferric citrate that is used to control the serum phosphorus levels in adult patients with DD-CKD on dialysis; and the treatment of iron deficiency anemia in adult patients with CKD not on dialysis. The company’s product pipeline includes AKB-9090, a drug targeting critical-care indications; and AKB-10108, a drug targeting conditions related to premature birth. It has collaboration agreements with Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation for the development and commercialization of vadadustat in Japan and other Asian countries, as well as research and license agreement with Janssen Pharmaceutica NV for the development and commercialization of hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase targeted compounds worldwide. Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

About electroCore

electroCore, Inc., a commercial stage bioelectronic medicine and wellness company, provides non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation technology platform in the United States, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company is developing gammaCore, a prescription only handheld device intended for regular or intermittent use for the acute treatment of pain associated with migraine and episodic cluster headache, as well as for the treatment of hemicrania continua and paroxysmal hemicrania. It also develops Truvaga for the support of general health and wellbeing; and TAC-STIM for human performance. In addition, the company offers gammacore Sapphire, a portable, reusable, rechargeable, and reloadable prescription medical device for various primary headache conditions. electroCore, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Rockaway, New Jersey.