Contrasting Prelude Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PRLD) & Agile Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AGRX)

Prelude Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PRLD) and Agile Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AGRX) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings and profitability.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Prelude Therapeutics and Agile Therapeutics’ top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Prelude Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	-$121.83 million	($1.88)	-2.01
Agile Therapeutics	$19.59 million	0.50	-$14.47 million	($3.65)	-0.39

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

Institutional & Insider Ownership

79.7% of Prelude Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 10.9% of Agile Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 62.8% of Prelude Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Agile Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Prelude Therapeutics has a beta of 1.55, suggesting that its share price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Agile Therapeutics has a beta of 1.56, suggesting that its share price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Prelude Therapeutics and Agile Therapeutics, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Prelude Therapeutics	2	1	0	0	1.33
Agile Therapeutics	0	1	0	0	2.00

Prelude Therapeutics currently has a consensus price target of $4.75, suggesting a potential upside of 25.99%. Agile Therapeutics has a consensus price target of $5.00, suggesting a potential upside of 253.61%. Given Agile Therapeutics’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Agile Therapeutics is more favorable than Prelude Therapeutics.

Profitability

This table compares Prelude Therapeutics and Agile Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Prelude Therapeutics	N/A	-52.97%	-47.20%
Agile Therapeutics	-36.24%	N/A	-147.37%

Summary

Agile Therapeutics beats Prelude Therapeutics on 7 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Prelude Therapeutics

Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery and development of novel precision cancer medicines to underserved patients. It is developing PRT1419, a myeloid cell leukemia-1 inhibitor, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of selected relapsed/refractory myeloid or B-cell malignancies; PRT2527, a cyclin-dependent kinase, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of advanced solid tumors; PRT3645, a cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitor, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of advanced and metastatic solid tumors; and PRT3879, a SMARCA2 selective protein degrader, which is in Phase 2/3 clinical trial for the treatment of advanced and metastatic solid tumors with loss of SMARCA4 due to truncating mutation and/or deletion. The company's CDK9 program is a regulator of cancer-promoting transcriptional programs, including MCL1, MYC and MYB. Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated was incorporated in 2016 and is based in Wilmington, Delaware.

About Agile Therapeutics

Agile Therapeutics, Inc., a women's healthcare company, engages in the research, development, and commercialization of prescription contraceptive products for women in the United States. It offers Twirla, a once-weekly prescription combination hormonal contraceptive patch. The company is also developing a pipeline of Twirla line extensions and other products, including AG200-15 Extended Regimen (ER), a regimen that allows a woman to have four episodes of withdrawal bleeding per year; AG200-15 smaller patch (SmP), which is a regimen designed to provide shorter and lighter withdrawal bleeds, and enhance contraceptive efficacy; AG200-15 ER SmP, a regimen to allow a woman to extend the length of her contraceptive cycle, as well as have shorter and lighter withdrawal bleeding episodes per year; and P-Patch, a progestin-only contraceptive patch intended for use by women who are unable or unwilling to take estrogen. Agile Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey.