Head to Head Review: PaxMedica (NASDAQ:PXMD) & MorphoSys (NASDAQ:MOR)

Risk and Volatility

MorphoSys has a beta of 1.2, suggesting that its stock price is 20% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PaxMedica has a beta of -0.99, suggesting that its stock price is 199% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares MorphoSys and PaxMedica”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
MorphoSys	$238.28 million	11.99	-$205.35 million	($3.48)	-5.45
PaxMedica	N/A	N/A	-$18.29 million	($6.09)	N/A

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

18.4% of MorphoSys shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 4.9% of PaxMedica shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of MorphoSys shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of PaxMedica shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares MorphoSys and PaxMedica’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
MorphoSys	-226.79%	-694.31%	-22.55%
PaxMedica	N/A	-3,167.89%	-560.35%

Summary

MorphoSys beats PaxMedica on 6 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About MorphoSys

MorphoSys AG, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development and commercialization of therapeutics for patients suffering from various cancers in Europe, Asia, and the United States. The company's product pipeline includes Pelabresib that is in Phase 3 trials to treat myelofibrosis and thrombocythemia; Tulmimetostat, a product candidate in Phase 1/2 trials for the treatment of solid tumors and lymphomas; Felzartamab, an antibody directed against CD38 for renal autoimmune diseases and relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma; Ianalumab, a candidate in Phase 3 clinical trials for Sjögren's disease, lupus nephritis, and other autoimmune diseases; Abelacimab that is in Phase 3 trials for venous thromboembolism prevention and cancer-associated thrombosis; Setrusumab, which is in Phase 2/3 trials for osteogenesis imperfecta; and Bimagrumab, a product candidate in Phase 2b trials for adult obesity. It also develops MOR210/TJ210/HIB210 that is in Phase 1 clinical trials for relapsed or refractory advanced solid tumors; and NOV-8, a candidate in Phase 2 trials for the treatment of pulmonary sarcoidosis and dermatitis. The company has collaboration and licensing agreements with I-Mab Biopharma, Novartis, Anthos Therapeutics, Ultragenyx, Mereo BioPharma, Lilly, Human Immunology Biosciences, Inc. Incyte Corporation, and Xencor, Inc. MorphoSys AG was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Planegg, Germany.

About PaxMedica

PaxMedica, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of anti-purinergic drug therapies for the treatment of disorders with intractable neurologic symptoms. Its lead product candidate is PAX-101 that is in Phase 3 clinical trials, an intravenous formulation of suramin for the treatment of autism spectrum disorder, myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome, long COVID-19 syndrome, fragile X syndrome, human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), and fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome. The company is developing PAX-102, an intranasal formulation of suramin for neurologic indications, as well as other new chemical entities that are targeted and selective antagonists of purine receptor subtypes; and PAX-HAT-301 for the treatment of HAT. It has a research collaboration agreement with PolarMar Health for Phase II clinical trial in austism spectrum disorder for emodin, which retains the rights for PolarMar to develop and commercialize any non-prescription supplement form of the product, and for PaxMedica, Inc. to retain exclusive rights to develop and commercialize a highly purified form of emodin. The company was formerly known as Purinix Pharmaceuticals LLC and changed its name to PaxMedica, Inc. in April 2020. PaxMedica, Inc. was incorporated in 2018 and is based in Tarrytown, New York.