Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX – Get Free Report) and Q32 Bio (NASDAQ:QTTB – Get Free Report) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability and valuation.
Risk and Volatility
Ardelyx has a beta of 0.85, meaning that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Q32 Bio has a beta of -0.32, meaning that its stock price is 132% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Ardelyx and Q32 Bio, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Ardelyx | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 3.00 |
| Q32 Bio | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2.25 |
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Ardelyx and Q32 Bio”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Ardelyx | $333.62 million | 3.63 | -$39.14 million | ($0.16) | -31.75 |
| Q32 Bio | -$6.65 million | -3.96 | -$112.96 million | ($14.25) | -0.15 |
Ardelyx has higher revenue and earnings than Q32 Bio. Ardelyx is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Q32 Bio, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Ardelyx and Q32 Bio’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Ardelyx | -11.73% | -24.87% | -10.51% |
| Q32 Bio | N/A | -146.18% | -54.49% |
Institutional and Insider Ownership
58.9% of Ardelyx shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 31.3% of Q32 Bio shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.9% of Ardelyx shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 16.1% of Q32 Bio shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
Ardelyx beats Q32 Bio on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Ardelyx
Ardelyx, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines to treat gastrointestinal and cardiorenal therapeutic areas in the United States and internationally. The company’s lead product candidate is tenapanor for the treatment of patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation. It also develops XPHOZAH, which is in Phase III clinical trial to reduce serum phosphorus in adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD)on dialysis, or hyperphosphatemia; RDX013, a potassium secretagogue, for the treatment of elevated serum potassium, or hyperkalemia, a problem among patients with kidney and/or heart failure; and RDX020, for adult patients with metabolic acidosis, a serious electrolyte disorder. The company has agreements with Kyowa Kirin, Fosun Pharmaceutical Industrial Development Co. Ltd., and Knight Therapeutics, Inc. for the development and commercialization of tenapanor in their respective territories. The company was formerly known as Nteryx, Inc. and changed its name to Ardelyx, Inc. in June 2008. Ardelyx, Inc. was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.
About Q32 Bio
Q32 Bio Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, develops biologic therapeutics to restore healthy immune balance in patients with autoimmune and inflammatory diseases driven by pathological immune dysfunction in the United States. Its lead product candidate is ADX-097, a humanized anti-C3d monoclonal antibody fusion protein to restore complement regulation, which has completed Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of renal and other complement-mediated diseases of high unmet need, including lupus nephritis, immunoglobulin A nephropathy, complement component 3 glomerulopathy, and anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis. The company is also developing Bempikibart (ADX-914), a fully human antiinterleukin-7 receptor alpha antagonist monoclonal antibody designed to re-regulate adaptive immune function by blocking signaling mediated by interleukin-7 and thymic stromal lymphopoietin that is Phase II clinical trial for the treatment of atopic dermatitis and alopecia areata. Q32 Bio Inc. was formerly known as AdMIRx Inc. and changed its name to Q32 Bio Inc. in April 2020. The company was founded in 2017 and is based in Waltham, Massachusetts.
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