Reviewing Phathom Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:PHAT) and Sophiris Bio (OTCMKTS:SPHS)

Phathom Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:PHAT) and Sophiris Bio (OTCMKTS:SPHS) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Phathom Pharmaceuticals and Sophiris Bio’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Phathom Pharmaceuticals	-1,292.14%	N/A	-79.57%
Sophiris Bio	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Phathom Pharmaceuticals and Sophiris Bio”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Phathom Pharmaceuticals	$680,000.00	939.22	-$201.59 million	($5.69)	-1.64
Sophiris Bio	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Sophiris Bio has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Phathom Pharmaceuticals.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

99.0% of Phathom Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.1% of Phathom Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.5% of Sophiris Bio shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Phathom Pharmaceuticals and Sophiris Bio, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Phathom Pharmaceuticals	0	1	3	0	2.75
Sophiris Bio	0	0	0	0	0.00

Phathom Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus price target of $22.50, suggesting a potential upside of 140.90%. Given Phathom Pharmaceuticals’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Phathom Pharmaceuticals is more favorable than Sophiris Bio.

Volatility and Risk

Phathom Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.72, suggesting that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sophiris Bio has a beta of 1.94, suggesting that its stock price is 94% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Phathom Pharmaceuticals beats Sophiris Bio on 6 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Phathom Pharmaceuticals

Phathom Pharmaceuticals, Inc., biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing treatments for gastrointestinal diseases. The company has the rights in the United States, Europe, and Canada for an investigational potassium-competitive acid blocker (P-CAB) that blocks acid secretion in the stomach. It is also developing vonoprazan for the treatment of erosive gastroesophageal reflux disease; and in combination with antibiotics for the treatment of Helicobacter pylori infection. The company was incorporated in 2018 and is headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey.

About Sophiris Bio

Sophiris Bio, Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, which engages in the development of products for the treatment of urological diseases. The company was founded by James L. Heppell in May 2003 and is headquartered in La Jolla, CA.