Reviewing Avadel Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AVDL) and Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC)

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) and Avadel Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AVDL) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Benitec Biopharma and Avadel Pharmaceuticals”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Benitec Biopharma	$80,000.00	1,279.90	-$21.75 million	($1.91)	-5.72
Avadel Pharmaceuticals	$95.15 million	13.13	-$160.28 million	($1.86)	-6.99

Benitec Biopharma has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Avadel Pharmaceuticals. Avadel Pharmaceuticals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Benitec Biopharma, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

Benitec Biopharma has a beta of 0.9, suggesting that its stock price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Avadel Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 1.5, suggesting that its stock price is 50% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Benitec Biopharma and Avadel Pharmaceuticals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Benitec Biopharma	N/A	-90.14%	-75.25%
Avadel Pharmaceuticals	-111.64%	-122.64%	-61.29%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

52.2% of Benitec Biopharma shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 69.2% of Avadel Pharmaceuticals shares are held by institutional investors. 4.3% of Benitec Biopharma shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.8% of Avadel Pharmaceuticals shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Benitec Biopharma and Avadel Pharmaceuticals, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Benitec Biopharma	0	0	5	1	3.17
Avadel Pharmaceuticals	0	0	7	0	3.00

Benitec Biopharma currently has a consensus price target of $22.60, indicating a potential upside of 106.77%. Avadel Pharmaceuticals has a consensus price target of $24.57, indicating a potential upside of 89.01%. Given Benitec Biopharma’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Benitec Biopharma is more favorable than Avadel Pharmaceuticals.

Summary

Benitec Biopharma beats Avadel Pharmaceuticals on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Benitec Biopharma

Benitec Biopharma Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, focuses on the development of novel genetic medicines. The company develops DNA-directed RNA interference-based therapeutics for chronic and life-threatening human conditions. It is developing BB-301, an adeno-associated virus based gene therapy agent for treating oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy. The company was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Hayward, California.

About Avadel Pharmaceuticals

Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc operates as a biopharmaceutical company in the United States. Its lead product candidate is LUMRYZ, a formulation of sodium oxybate, which is in a Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of excessive daytime sleepiness or cataplexy in adults with narcolepsy. The company was formerly known as Flamel Technologies SA and changed its name to Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc in January 2017. Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.