Athira Pharma (NASDAQ:ATHA – Get Free Report) and CRISPR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP – Get Free Report) are both medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, profitability and valuation.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
57.1% of Athira Pharma shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 69.2% of CRISPR Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 19.8% of Athira Pharma shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.1% of CRISPR Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Profitability
This table compares Athira Pharma and CRISPR Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Athira Pharma | N/A | -115.62% | -88.94% |
| CRISPR Therapeutics | -118.13% | -12.15% | -10.35% |
Valuation & Earnings
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Athira Pharma | N/A | N/A | -$117.67 million | ($2.85) | -0.16 |
| CRISPR Therapeutics | $371.21 million | 11.43 | -$153.61 million | ($2.83) | -17.57 |
Athira Pharma has higher earnings, but lower revenue than CRISPR Therapeutics. CRISPR Therapeutics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Athira Pharma, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk & Volatility
Athira Pharma has a beta of 2.97, indicating that its stock price is 197% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CRISPR Therapeutics has a beta of 1.67, indicating that its stock price is 67% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Athira Pharma and CRISPR Therapeutics, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Athira Pharma | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| CRISPR Therapeutics | 1 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 2.50 |
Athira Pharma currently has a consensus target price of $13.83, suggesting a potential upside of 2,855.84%. CRISPR Therapeutics has a consensus target price of $74.50, suggesting a potential upside of 49.84%. Given Athira Pharma’s higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Athira Pharma is more favorable than CRISPR Therapeutics.
Summary
CRISPR Therapeutics beats Athira Pharma on 7 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Athira Pharma
Athira Pharma, Inc., a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing small molecules to restore neuronal health and slow neurodegradation. Its lead product candidate is Fosgonimeton (ATH-1017), a small molecule designed to modulate the neurotrophic hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) system and its receptor, MET, for a healthy nervous system that is in LIFT-AD Phase 2/3 and ACT-AD Phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, as well as is in Phase 2 clinical trials to treat Parkinson's disease dementia and Dementia with Lewy bodies. The company's product pipeline includes ATH-1020, an orally available brain-penetrant small molecule designed to enhance the HGF/MET system that is in Phase 1 clinical trials to treat neuropathic pain and neurodegenerative diseases; and ATH-1105, an oral small molecule drug candidate, which is a preclinical model for the treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. In addition, it has a license agreement with Washington State University to offer for sale products covered by certain licensed patents, including dihexa, the chemical compound into which fosgonimeton metabolizes following administration; and collaboration and grant agreement with National Institutes of Health Grant to support ACT-AD Phase 2 clinical trial for fosgonimeton. The company was formerly known as M3 Biotechnology, Inc. and changed its name to Athira Pharma, Inc. in April 2019. Athira Pharma, Inc. was incorporated in 2011 and is headquartered in Bothell, Washington.
About CRISPR Therapeutics
CRISPR Therapeutics is a gene-editing company focused on developing transformative gene-based medicines for serious diseases using its proprietary CRISPR/Cas9 platform. CRISPR/Cas9 is a revolutionary gene-editing technology that allows for precise, directed changes to genomic DNA. CRISPR Therapeutics has established a portfolio of therapeutic programs across a broad range of disease areas including hemoglobinopathies, oncology, regenerative medicine and rare diseases. To accelerate and expand its efforts, CRISPR Therapeutics has established strategic collaborations with companies including Bayer, Vertex Pharmaceuticals and ViaCyte, Inc. CRISPR Therapeutics AG is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland, with its wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary, CRISPR Therapeutics, Inc., and R&D operations based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and business offices in San Francisco, California and London, United Kingdom. For more information, please visit www.crisprtx.com.
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