Pyxis Oncology (NASDAQ:PYXS) and Lipocine (NASDAQ:LPCN) Head to Head Contrast

Lipocine (NASDAQ:LPCN) and Pyxis Oncology (NASDAQ:PYXS) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Lipocine and Pyxis Oncology’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lipocine	N/A	-38.58%	-35.28%
Pyxis Oncology	N/A	-38.34%	-30.01%

Volatility and Risk

Lipocine has a beta of 1.22, suggesting that its share price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pyxis Oncology has a beta of 1.27, suggesting that its share price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

9.1% of Lipocine shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.1% of Pyxis Oncology shares are held by institutional investors. 6.1% of Lipocine shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 9.3% of Pyxis Oncology shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Lipocine and Pyxis Oncology”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lipocine	$4.80 million	5.66	-$16.35 million	($1.71)	-2.97
Pyxis Oncology	$16.15 million	11.82	-$73.79 million	($1.36)	-2.38

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Lipocine and Pyxis Oncology, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lipocine	0	0	1	0	3.00
Pyxis Oncology	0	0	8	0	3.00

Lipocine presently has a consensus price target of $10.00, indicating a potential upside of 96.85%. Pyxis Oncology has a consensus price target of $9.00, indicating a potential upside of 177.78%. Given Pyxis Oncology’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Pyxis Oncology is more favorable than Lipocine.

Summary

Pyxis Oncology beats Lipocine on 11 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lipocine

Lipocine Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the research and development for the delivery of drugs for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Its lead product candidate is TLANDO, an oral testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) comprising testosterone undecanoate. The company's pipeline candidates also include TLANDO XR a candidate for oral TRT for once daily dosing, which has completed Phase 2b clinical study; LPCN 1148, an oral prodrug of bioidentical testosterone, being developed for the treatment of cirrhosis, currently under Phase 2 clinical studies; LPCN 1154, An oral neurosteroid, being developed for the treatment of postpartum depression, currently under Phase 2 studies; LPCN 2101, a NAS candidate, for women with epilepsy; and LPCN 2203 for essential tremor. It is also involved in the development of LPCN 1144, an oral prodrug of bioidentical testosterone for the treatment of pre-cirrhotic non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, which has completed Phase 2 testing; and LPCN 1107, an oral product candidate of 17-alpha-hydroxy progesterone caproate product, currently under Phase 3 studies for the prevention of recurrent preterm birth. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

About Pyxis Oncology

Pyxis Oncology, Inc., a clinical stage company, engages in the development of therapeutics to treat cancers. Its lead antibody-drug conjugates (ADC) product candidate is PYX-201, an investigational novel ADC consisting of human immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1), which is in Phase 1 clinical trial to treat patients with relapsed or refractory solid tumors; and lead immuno-oncology (IO) product candidate is PYX-106, an investigational fully human IgG1 Siglec-15-targeting antibody that is in Phase 1 clinical trial to treat patients with advanced solid tumors. The company is also developing PYX-107, a CD40 agonist with demonstrated anti-cancer activity in patients who previously progressed on PD-(L)1 inhibitors, which is in Phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of solid tumors, such as soft tissue sarcomas, esophageal and gastroesophageal junction, cancers, and melanoma in combination with chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy. It has in-license agreement with Pfizer Inc. to develop and commercialize ADC product candidates directed to certain licensed targets, including PYX-201 and PYX-203, and products containing the ADC product candidates; and Biosion USA, Inc. for development, manufacture, and commercialization of PYX-106, an IO product candidate. Pyxis Oncology, Inc. was incorporated in 2018 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.