Analyzing Achilles Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACHL) and Passage Bio (NASDAQ:PASG)

Achilles Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACHL) and Passage Bio (NASDAQ:PASG) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Achilles Therapeutics and Passage Bio, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Achilles Therapeutics	1	1	1	0	2.00
Passage Bio	0	0	4	0	3.00

Achilles Therapeutics presently has a consensus target price of $4.00, indicating a potential upside of 273.83%. Passage Bio has a consensus target price of $7.75, indicating a potential upside of 770.79%. Given Passage Bio’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Passage Bio is more favorable than Achilles Therapeutics.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

56.4% of Achilles Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 53.5% of Passage Bio shares are held by institutional investors. 5.4% of Achilles Therapeutics shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 4.3% of Passage Bio shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

Achilles Therapeutics has a beta of 1.37, meaning that its stock price is 37% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Passage Bio has a beta of 1.43, meaning that its stock price is 43% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Achilles Therapeutics and Passage Bio”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Achilles Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	-$69.67 million	($1.65)	-0.65
Passage Bio	N/A	N/A	-$102.06 million	($1.17)	-0.76

Passage Bio is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Achilles Therapeutics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Achilles Therapeutics and Passage Bio’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Achilles Therapeutics	N/A	-54.45%	-47.68%
Passage Bio	N/A	-72.53%	-52.10%

About Achilles Therapeutics

Achilles Therapeutics plc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops precision T cell therapies to treat solid tumors. Its platform identifies mutations formed early in the development of cancer. The company offers PELEUS, a proprietary AI-powered bioinformatics platform, used to identify clonal neoantigens in a patient. It also develops CHIRON, which is in Phase I/IIa clinical trial for use in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer; and THETIS, a product candidate in Phase I/IIa clinical trial for use in the treatment of metastatic or recurrent melanoma. The company was formerly known as Achilles TX Limited and changed its name to Achilles Therapeutics Plc in February 2021. Achilles Therapeutics Plc was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

About Passage Bio

Passage Bio, Inc., a genetic medicines company, develops gene therapies for central nervous system diseases. It develops PBGM01, a functional GLB1 gene encoding ß-galactosidase for infantile GM1; PBFT02, a functional granulin (GRN) and gene encoding progranulin (PGRN) for the treatment of FTD caused by progranulin deficiency; and PBKR03, a functional GALC gene encoding the hydrolytic enzyme galactosylceramidase for infantile Krabbe disease. The company develops PBML04 for the treatment of metachromatic leukodystrophy; PBAL05 for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; and other program for huntington's disease. It has a strategic research collaboration with the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania's Gene Therapy Program; and collaboration agreement, and a development services and clinical supply agreement with Catalent Maryland, Inc. Passage Bio, Inc. was incorporated in 2017 and is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.