Critical Analysis: Moleculin Biotech (NASDAQ:MBRX) & RedHill Biopharma (NASDAQ:RDHL)

RedHill Biopharma (NASDAQ:RDHL) and Moleculin Biotech (NASDAQ:MBRX) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, earnings, profitability, dividends, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Volatility & Risk

RedHill Biopharma has a beta of 3.68, indicating that its stock price is 268% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Moleculin Biotech has a beta of 1.86, indicating that its stock price is 86% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares RedHill Biopharma and Moleculin Biotech”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
RedHill Biopharma	$6.53 million	1.33	$23.92 million	($10.00)	-0.68
Moleculin Biotech	N/A	N/A	-$29.77 million	N/A	N/A

RedHill Biopharma has higher revenue and earnings than Moleculin Biotech.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

7.2% of RedHill Biopharma shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 15.5% of Moleculin Biotech shares are held by institutional investors. 6.8% of RedHill Biopharma shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.1% of Moleculin Biotech shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares RedHill Biopharma and Moleculin Biotech’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
RedHill Biopharma	N/A	N/A	N/A
Moleculin Biotech	N/A	-157.44%	-97.16%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for RedHill Biopharma and Moleculin Biotech, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
RedHill Biopharma	0	0	0	0	0.00
Moleculin Biotech	0	0	3	0	3.00

Moleculin Biotech has a consensus target price of $31.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1,035.53%. Given Moleculin Biotech’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Moleculin Biotech is more favorable than RedHill Biopharma.

About RedHill Biopharma

RedHill Biopharma Ltd., a specialty biopharmaceutical company, primarily focuses on gastrointestinal and infectious diseases. The company develops and commercializes Talicia for the treatment of H. pylori infection in adults; and Aemcolo for the treatment of travelers' diarrhea in adults. Its pipeline consists of five therapeutic candidates, which are in clinical development include opaganib for treating patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 severe COVID-19 pneumonia, advanced unresectable cholangiocarcinoma, prostate cancer, and nuclear radiation protection; RHB-107 (upamostat) for treating outpatients infected with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19 disease) and advanced unresectable cholangiocarcinoma; RHB-104 for Crohn's disease; RHB-102 (Bekinda) for the treatment of acute gastroenteritis and gastritis, irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea, and oncology support anti-emetic; and RHB-204 for pulmonary nontuberculous mycobacteria infections caused by mycobacterium avium complex. The company was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel.

About Moleculin Biotech

Moleculin Biotech, Inc., a clinical stage pharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of drug candidates for the treatment of cancers and viruses. Its lead drug candidate is Annamycin, which is in Phase 1B/2 clinical trials for the treatment of relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and soft tissue sarcoma metastasized to the lungs. The company is also developing WP1066, an immune/transcription modulator designed to inhibit phosphorylated signal transducer and activator of transcription and other oncogenic transcription factors targeting brain tumors, and pancreatic and other cancers. In addition, it develops WP1220, an analog of WP1066 for the topical treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma; and WP1122 to treat viruses, as well as cancer indications, including brain tumors, and pancreatic and other cancers. The company was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.