Daré Bioscience (NASDAQ:DARE) and Zevra Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ZVRA) Head to Head Review

Daré Bioscience (NASDAQ:DARE) and Zevra Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ZVRA) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Daré Bioscience and Zevra Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Daré Bioscience	N/A	-1,482.38%	-120.75%
Zevra Therapeutics	-167.69%	-68.41%	-35.19%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

6.7% of Daré Bioscience shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 35.0% of Zevra Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.3% of Daré Bioscience shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.4% of Zevra Therapeutics shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Daré Bioscience has a beta of 1.16, indicating that its stock price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Zevra Therapeutics has a beta of 1.81, indicating that its stock price is 81% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Daré Bioscience and Zevra Therapeutics’ gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Daré Bioscience	$2.81 million	10.57	-$30.16 million	($0.34)	-0.87
Zevra Therapeutics	$27.46 million	7.23	-$46.05 million	($1.29)	-3.54

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Daré Bioscience and Zevra Therapeutics, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Daré Bioscience	0	2	1	0	2.33
Zevra Therapeutics	0	0	6	0	3.00

Daré Bioscience presently has a consensus price target of $6.00, indicating a potential upside of 1,931.83%. Zevra Therapeutics has a consensus price target of $19.50, indicating a potential upside of 326.70%. Given Daré Bioscience’s higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Daré Bioscience is more favorable than Zevra Therapeutics.

About Daré Bioscience

Daré Bioscience, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the identifying, developing, and marketing products for women's health in the United States. It develops therapies in the areas of contraception, reproductive health, menopause, fertility, and sexual and vaginal health. The company's product includes XACIATO, a single-dose vaginal gel prescription product for the treatment of bacterial vaginosis in female patients 12 years of age and older. Its products in advanced clinical development include Ovaprene, a hormone-free monthly intravaginal contraceptive; Sildenafil Cream, a cream formulation of sildenafil for topical administration to the vulva and vagina for treatment of female sexual arousal disorder; and DARE-HRT1, a combination of bio-identical estradiol and progesterone intravaginal ring for the treatment of vasomotor symptoms in hormone therapy. The company's Phase I-ready products are DARE-VVA1, a proprietary formulation of tamoxifen for intravaginal to treat vulvar vaginal atrophy in women with hormone-receptor positive breast cancer; DARE-PDM1, a proprietary hydrogel formulation of diclofenac, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, for vaginal administration as a treatment for dysmenorrhea; DARE-204 and DARE-214, an injectable formulations of etonogestrel to provide contraception over 6-month and 12-month periods; and DARE-FRT1, an intravaginal ring containing bio-identical progesterone for broader luteal phase support as part of an in vitro fertilization treatment plan, as well as DARE-PTB1, an intravaginal ring containing bio-identical progesterone for the prevention of preterm birth. Its products in pre-clinical stage include DARE-LARC1, a contraceptive implant delivering levonorgestrel with a woman-centered design that controlled contraceptive option; DARE-GML, an intravaginally-delivered potential multi-target antimicrobial agent formulated with glycerol monolaurate; DARE-LBT, a novel hydrogel formulation for vaginal delivery of live biotherapeutics to support vaginal health; and DARE-RH1, a non-hormonal contraception for men and women. The company entered into license agreement with Organon & Co. and Organon International GmbH to commercialize XACIATO. Daré Bioscience, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

About Zevra Therapeutics

Zevra Therapeutics, Inc., a rare disease company melding science, discovers and develops various proprietary prodrugs to treat serious medical conditions in the United States. The company utilizes its Ligand Activated Therapy technology to generate improved prodrug versions of FDA-approved drugs, as well as to generate prodrug versions of existing compounds that may have applications for new disease indications. Its prodrug product candidate pipeline is focused on the high need areas of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, stimulant use disorder, and CNS rare diseases, including idiopathic hypersomnia (IH). The company's lead product candidate KP1077, which is under Phase II clinical trial for the treatment of IH and narcolepsy, is based on its prodrug of d-methylphenidate, known as serdexmethylphenidate. It is also developing KP879, a prodrug product candidate for the treatment of stimulant use disorder and is under Phase II clinical trial. In addition, the company has received FDA approval for AZSTARYS, a once-daily treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in patents age six years and older, and for APADAZ, an immediate-release combination product containing benzhydrocodone, a prodrug of hydrocodone, and acetaminophen. The company's product pipeline include, arimoclomol It has collaboration and license agreement with KVK-Tech, Inc. and Commave Therapeutics SA. The company was formerly known as KemPharm, Inc. and changed its name to Zevra Therapeutics, Inc. in February 2023. Zevra Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Celebration, Florida.