Critical Contrast: Evolus (NASDAQ:EOLS) and Nuvectis Pharma (NASDAQ:NVCT)

Evolus (NASDAQ:EOLS) and Nuvectis Pharma (NASDAQ:NVCT) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership and dividends.

Risk & Volatility

Evolus has a beta of 1.32, suggesting that its share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Nuvectis Pharma has a beta of 0.17, suggesting that its share price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Evolus and Nuvectis Pharma’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Evolus	-22.33%	-847.60%	-22.15%
Nuvectis Pharma	N/A	-155.80%	-104.02%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

90.7% of Evolus shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.8% of Nuvectis Pharma shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.1% of Evolus shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 35.8% of Nuvectis Pharma shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Evolus and Nuvectis Pharma”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Evolus	$202.09 million	4.45	-$61.69 million	($0.91)	-15.62
Nuvectis Pharma	N/A	N/A	-$22.26 million	($1.16)	-5.81

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Evolus and Nuvectis Pharma, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Evolus	0	0	4	0	3.00
Nuvectis Pharma	0	0	1	0	3.00

Evolus currently has a consensus price target of $23.67, indicating a potential upside of 66.55%. Nuvectis Pharma has a consensus price target of $21.00, indicating a potential upside of 211.57%. Given Nuvectis Pharma’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Nuvectis Pharma is more favorable than Evolus.

Summary

Nuvectis Pharma beats Evolus on 7 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Evolus

Evolus, Inc., a performance beauty company, focuses on delivering products in the cash-pay aesthetic market in the United States, Canada, and Europe. The company offers Jeuveau, a proprietary 900 kilodalton purified botulinum toxin type A formulation for the temporary improvement in the appearance of moderate to severe glabellar lines in adults. It also provides dermal filler products under the Estyme and Evolysse names. The company was incorporated in 2012 and is headquartered in Newport Beach, California.

About Nuvectis Pharma

Nuvectis Pharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of precision medicines for the treatment of serious unmet medical needs in oncology. The company's lead product candidate is NXP800, a novel small molecule that is in Phase 1b clinical trials for the treatment of patients with platinum-resistant, ARID1a-mutated ovarian carcinoma. It is also developing NXP900, a small molecule drug candidate, which is in Phase 1a clinical trails that inhibits the Proto-oncogene c-Src and YES1 kinases. It has license agreement with the CRT Pioneer Fund for the NXP800 and any of related derivatives; and the University of Edinburgh for the NXP900 and any of associated derivatives. The company was formerly known as Centry Pharma, Inc. and changed its name to Nuvectis Pharma, Inc. in July 2021. Nuvectis Pharma, Inc. was incorporated in 2020 and is based in Fort Lee, New Jersey.