Financial Contrast: GT Biopharma (NASDAQ:GTBP) and Aeterna Zentaris (NASDAQ:AEZS)

GT Biopharma (NASDAQ:GTBP) and Aeterna Zentaris (NASDAQ:AEZS) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and risk.

Profitability

This table compares GT Biopharma and Aeterna Zentaris’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
GT Biopharma	N/A	-257.47%	-131.09%
Aeterna Zentaris	-760.32%	-83.45%	-45.76%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for GT Biopharma and Aeterna Zentaris, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
GT Biopharma	0	0	1	1	3.50
Aeterna Zentaris	0	0	0	0	0.00

GT Biopharma presently has a consensus price target of $11.00, suggesting a potential upside of 350.82%. Given GT Biopharma’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe GT Biopharma is more favorable than Aeterna Zentaris.

Volatility and Risk

GT Biopharma has a beta of 0.59, suggesting that its share price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Aeterna Zentaris has a beta of 1.55, suggesting that its share price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

8.1% of GT Biopharma shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.7% of Aeterna Zentaris shares are owned by institutional investors. 10.9% of GT Biopharma shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Aeterna Zentaris shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares GT Biopharma and Aeterna Zentaris”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
GT Biopharma	N/A	N/A	-$7.60 million	($7.00)	-0.35
Aeterna Zentaris	$2.37 million	2.08	-$16.55 million	($14.86)	-0.19

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

Summary

GT Biopharma beats Aeterna Zentaris on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About GT Biopharma

GT Biopharma, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of immuno-oncology products based on its proprietary Tri-specific Killer Engager (TriKE) fusion protein immune cell engager technology platform. It develops GTB-3550, a single-chain tri-specific recombinant fusion protein conjugate that is in Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of myelodysplastic syndromes, refractory/relapsed acute myeloid leukemia or advanced systemic mastocytosis, and CD33+ malignancies. The company is developing GTB-3650, which is in preclinical studies that target CD33 on the surface of myeloid leukemias; and GTB-5550 that is in preclinical studies for treating patients with B7-H3 positive solid tumors. GT Biopharma, Inc. has a co-development partnership agreement with Altor BioScience Corporation for the clinical development of a 161533 (GTB-3550) TriKE fusion protein for cancer therapies; and a license agreement with the Regents of the University of Minnesota to develop and commercialize cancer therapies using TriKE technology. The company was formerly known as OXIS International, Inc. and changed its name to GT Biopharma, Inc. in July 2017. GT Biopharma, Inc. was incorporated in 1965 and is based in Brisbane, California.

About Aeterna Zentaris

Aeterna Zentaris Inc., a specialty biopharmaceutical company, engages in developing and commercializing therapeutics and diagnostic tests in Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, Denmark, Germany, the United States, and internationally. Its lead product is Macrilen (macimorelin), an orally available peptidomimetic ghrelin receptor (GHSR-1a) agonist that stimulates the secretion of growth hormone by binding to the GHSR-1a for the diagnosis of patients with adult growth hormone deficiency and childhood-onset growth hormone deficiency, as well as endocrinology and oncology indications; AEZS-150, a delayed clearance parathyroid hormone fusion polypeptide that is in preclinical trial for the treatment of chronic hypoparathyroidism; and AEZS-130 that is in preclinical trial for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The company also has a license and research agreement with University of Wuerzburg to develop, manufacture, and commercialize AIM biologicals for the treatment of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder; and for pre-clinical development towards the potential treatment of Parkinson's disease. In addition, it has a license agreement with Consilient Health Ltd. and NK MEDITECH Ltd. for the development and commercialization of macimorelin; a distribution and commercialization agreement with Er-Kim Pharmaceuticals Bulgaria Eood for the commercialization of macimorelin for the diagnosis of growth hormone deficiency in children and adults; as well as The University of Sheffield, the United Kingdom for the development, manufacture, and commercialization of parathyroid hormone fusion polypeptides for the treatment of chronic hypoparathyroidism. Aeterna Zentaris Inc. was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.