Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) vs. Vanda Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VNDA) Head-To-Head Analysis

Vanda Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VNDA) and Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) are both medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and dividends.

Volatility and Risk

Vanda Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.77, suggesting that its share price is 23% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Novo Nordisk A/S has a beta of 0.45, suggesting that its share price is 55% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Vanda Pharmaceuticals and Novo Nordisk A/S”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vanda Pharmaceuticals	$190.86 million	1.41	$2.51 million	($0.28)	-16.43
Novo Nordisk A/S	$270.58 billion	1.43	$12.15 billion	$3.09	27.96

Novo Nordisk A/S has higher revenue and earnings than Vanda Pharmaceuticals. Vanda Pharmaceuticals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Novo Nordisk A/S, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

88.1% of Vanda Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 11.5% of Novo Nordisk A/S shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.9% of Vanda Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Novo Nordisk A/S shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Vanda Pharmaceuticals and Novo Nordisk A/S’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vanda Pharmaceuticals	-8.59%	-3.02%	-2.52%
Novo Nordisk A/S	35.03%	86.32%	27.42%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Vanda Pharmaceuticals and Novo Nordisk A/S, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vanda Pharmaceuticals	0	0	2	0	3.00
Novo Nordisk A/S	0	1	6	1	3.00

Vanda Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus price target of $15.50, indicating a potential upside of 236.96%. Novo Nordisk A/S has a consensus price target of $140.20, indicating a potential upside of 62.25%. Given Vanda Pharmaceuticals’ higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Vanda Pharmaceuticals is more favorable than Novo Nordisk A/S.

Summary

Novo Nordisk A/S beats Vanda Pharmaceuticals on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Vanda Pharmaceuticals

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapies to address high unmet medical needs worldwide. The company’s marketed products include HETLIOZ to treat non-24-hour sleep-wake disorders; and Fanapt oral tablets for the treatment of schizophrenia. Its pipeline products include HETLIOZ (tasimelteon) to treat jet lag disorder, insomnia, delayed sleep phase disorder, sleep disturbances in autism spectrum disorder, and pediatric Non-24; Fanapt (iloperidone) for the treatment of bipolar I disorder and Parkinson’s disease psychosis, as well as a long acting injectable (LAI) formulation to treat schizophrenia; and Tradipitant (VLY-686), a small molecule neurokinin-1 receptor (NK-1R) antagonist to treat gastroparesis, motion sickness, atopic dermatitis, and COVID-19 pneumonia. The company’s pipeline products also include VTR-297, a small molecule histone deacetylase inhibitor to treat hematologic malignancies and with potential use as a treatment for various oncology indications; VQW-765, a small molecule nicotinic acetylcholine receptor partial agonist to treat performance anxiety and psychiatric disorders; VHX-896, an active metabolite of iloperidone; and antisense oligonucleotide molecules. In addition, it offers a portfolio of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator activators and inhibitors that include VSJ-110 for the treatment of dry eye and ocular inflammation; and VPO-227 for the treatment of secretory diarrhea disorders comprising cholera. Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. was incorporated in 2002 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.

About Novo Nordisk A/S

Novo Nordisk A/S, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research and development, manufacture, and distribution of pharmaceutical products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, North America, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Diabetes and Obesity Care, and Rare Disease. The Diabetes and Obesity care segment provides products for diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular, and other emerging therapy areas. The Rare Disease segment offers products in the areas of rare blood disorders, rare endocrine disorders, and hormone replacement therapy. The company also provides insulin pens, growth hormone pens, and injection needles. In addition, it offers smart solutions for diabetes treatment, such as smart insulin pens and Dose Check, an insulin dose guidance application. The company has a collaboration agreement with Aspen Pharmaceuticals to produce insulin products; and with Korro Bio, Inc. for the discovery and development of new genetic medicines to treat cardiometabolic diseases. Novo Nordisk A/S was founded in 1923 and is headquartered in Bagsvaerd, Denmark.