Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS) vs. Sorrento Therapeutics (OTCMKTS:SRNEQ) Critical Review

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS) and Sorrento Therapeutics (OTCMKTS:SRNEQ) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Tarsus Pharmaceuticals and Sorrento Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Tarsus Pharmaceuticals	-103.64%	-55.86%	-39.28%
Sorrento Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Tarsus Pharmaceuticals and Sorrento Therapeutics”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Tarsus Pharmaceuticals	$182.95 million	10.48	-$135.89 million	($3.10)	-16.12
Sorrento Therapeutics	$62.84 million	0.01	-$572.84 million	N/A	N/A

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals has higher revenue and earnings than Sorrento Therapeutics.

Volatility & Risk

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 1.05, meaning that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sorrento Therapeutics has a beta of 2.25, meaning that its share price is 125% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Tarsus Pharmaceuticals and Sorrento Therapeutics, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Tarsus Pharmaceuticals	0	1	5	1	3.00
Sorrento Therapeutics	0	0	0	0	0.00

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus price target of $63.67, suggesting a potential upside of 27.41%. Given Tarsus Pharmaceuticals’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Tarsus Pharmaceuticals is more favorable than Sorrento Therapeutics.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

90.0% of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.0% of Sorrento Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 8.3% of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.6% of Sorrento Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals beats Sorrento Therapeutics on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a commercial stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of novel therapeutic candidates for eye care in the United States. The company's lead product candidate is XDEMVY, a novel therapeutic for the treatment of blepharitis caused by the infestation of Demodex mites, as well as to treat meibomian gland disease. It is developing TP-04 for the treatment of rosacea; and TP-05 for Lyme prophylaxis and community malaria reduction. In addition, the company develops lotilaner to address diseases across therapeutic categories in human medicine, including eye care, dermatology, and other infectious disease prevention. Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was incorporated in 2016 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.

About Sorrento Therapeutics

Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical and commercial stage biopharmaceutical company, develops a portfolio of next-generation treatments for three therapeutic areas: cancer, infectious disease,and pain. It operates through two segments, Sorrento Therapeutics and Scilex. The company provides cancer therapeutic by leveraging its proprietary G-MAB antibody library and targeted delivery modalities, which include chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy (CAR-T), dimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, and antibody drug conjugate, as well as bispecific antibody approach; and Sofusa, a drug delivery technology that deliver biologic directly into the lymphatic system. Its clinical programs in development include anti-CD38 CAR-T therapy for the treatment of multiple myeloma, as well as for amyloidosis and graft versus host disease. The company develops resiniferatoxin, a non-opioid-based TRPV1 agonist neurotoxin for late stage cancer and osteoarthritis pain treatment; and ZTlido, a lidocaine topical system for the treatment of post-herpetic neuralgia. It engages in the development of SEMDEXA, an injectable viscous gel formulation, which is Phase III trial for the treatment of sciatica, a pathology of low back pain; SP-103, an investigational non-aqueous lidocaine topical system undergoing clinical development in chronic low back pain condition; and SP-104, a novel low-dose delayed-release naltrexone hydrochloride formulation for the treatment of fibromyalgia. It has collaboration with SmartPharm Therapeutics Inc. to develop gene-encoded antibody vaccine to protect against COVID-19; and Mayo Clinic for Phase Ib pilot study using sofusa lymphatic drug delivery technology to deliver Ipilimumab in patient with melanoma. The company was founded in 2006 and is based in San Diego, California. On February 13, 2023, Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc., along with its affiliate, filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. The plan was later approved as Chapter 11 liquidation on November 30, 2023.