Reviewing Personalis (NASDAQ:PSNL) and Evoke Pharma (NASDAQ:EVOK)

Personalis (NASDAQ:PSNL) and Evoke Pharma (NASDAQ:EVOK) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, risk, earnings and dividends.

Volatility and Risk

Personalis has a beta of 1.95, indicating that its share price is 95% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Evoke Pharma has a beta of -0.04, indicating that its share price is 104% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

61.9% of Personalis shares are held by institutional investors. 3.8% of Personalis shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.3% of Evoke Pharma shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Personalis and Evoke Pharma, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Personalis	0	0	6	0	3.00
Evoke Pharma	0	0	0	0	0.00

Personalis currently has a consensus price target of $7.67, suggesting a potential upside of 1.48%. Given Personalis’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Personalis is more favorable than Evoke Pharma.

Profitability

This table compares Personalis and Evoke Pharma’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Personalis	-98.10%	-48.78%	-34.70%
Evoke Pharma	-43.80%	-101.91%	-33.75%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Personalis and Evoke Pharma”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Personalis	$84.61 million	7.89	-$81.28 million	($1.29)	-5.86
Evoke Pharma	$10.25 million	0.39	-$5.35 million	($2.87)	-0.94

Evoke Pharma has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Personalis. Personalis is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Evoke Pharma, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Personalis beats Evoke Pharma on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Personalis

Personalis, Inc. develops and markets advanced cancer genomic tests and analytics primarily in the United States, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. Its tests and analytics are used by pharmaceutical companies for translational research, biomarker discovery, and development of personalized cancer therapies, as well as advanced tests are used by physicians to detect cancer recurrence, monitor cancer evolution, and uncover insights for therapy selection. The company offers NeXT Personal, a tumor-informed liquid biopsy test for detection of minimal residual disease (MRD) and recurrence in cancer; and ImmunoID NeXT, a tissue-based test that combines whole exome (DNA) and whole transcriptome (RNA) sequencing data with advanced analytics to provide a multi-dimensional view of the tumor and the tumor microenvironment from a single sample. It also provides NeXT Personal Dx, a tumor-informed liquid biopsy test for detection of MRD and recurrence in cancer; and NeXT Dx, a comprehensive tumor profiling test that unlocks the entire exome (DNA) and transcriptome (RNA) with matched tumor-normal analysis. In addition, the company performs whole exome sequencing (WES) of cancer tissue and matched blood samples for diagnostic companies as an input to their products; and whole genome sequencing (WGS) on human samples for research projects, such as population sequencing initiatives, as well as offers sequencing and data analysis services to support population sequencing initiatives. Its customers include pharmaceutical companies, biopharmaceutical companies, diagnostics companies, universities, non-profits, government entities, and patients. The company was incorporated in 2011 and is headquartered in Fremont, California.

About Evoke Pharma

Evoke Pharma, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company, primarily focuses on the development and commercialization of drugs for the treatment of gastroenterological disorders and diseases. It offers Gimoti, a metoclopramide nasal spray to treat symptoms associated with acute and recurrent diabetic gastroparesis in adults. The company markets its products to gastroenterologists, internal medicine specialists, primary care physicians, and select health care providers. Evoke Pharma, Inc. was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Solana Beach, California.