Analyzing Aeterna Zentaris (NASDAQ:AEZS) and GRI Bio (NASDAQ:GRI)

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

Profitability

This table compares GRI Bio and Aeterna Zentaris’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
GRI Bio	N/A	-331.02%	-174.48%
Aeterna Zentaris	-760.32%	-83.45%	-45.76%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for GRI Bio and Aeterna Zentaris, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
GRI Bio	0	0	0	0	N/A
Aeterna Zentaris	0	0	1	0	3.00

Aeterna Zentaris has a consensus price target of $60.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1,521.62%. Given Aeterna Zentaris’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Aeterna Zentaris is more favorable than GRI Bio.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

34.0% of GRI Bio shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.7% of Aeterna Zentaris shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.0% of GRI Bio shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Aeterna Zentaris shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares GRI Bio and Aeterna Zentaris”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
GRI Bio	N/A	N/A	-$13.04 million	N/A	N/A
Aeterna Zentaris	$2.37 million	2.79	-$16.55 million	($14.86)	-0.25

GRI Bio has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Aeterna Zentaris.

Risk & Volatility

GRI Bio has a beta of -1.71, meaning that its share price is 271% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Aeterna Zentaris has a beta of 1.55, meaning that its share price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Aeterna Zentaris beats GRI Bio on 6 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About GRI Bio

GRI Bio, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on treating inflammatory, fibrotic, and autoimmune diseases in the United States. Its product pipeline comprises GRI-0621, which is in phase II clinical development for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis; GRI-0803 which is in phase I trial for the treatment of systematic lupus erythematosus; GRI-0124, which is in pre-clinical development for the treatment of primary sclerosing cholangitis; and GRI-0729 in pre-clinical development. The company also develops ADAIR and ADMIR for treatment of attention -deficit/hyperactivity disorder. GRI Bio, Inc. was formerly known as Glycoregimmune, Inc. GRI Bio, Inc. was founded in 2009 and is based in LA Jolla, 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.