Financial Contrast: Vanda Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VNDA) versus eFFECTOR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:EFTR)

eFFECTOR Therapeutics (NASDAQ:EFTR) and Vanda Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VNDA) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares eFFECTOR Therapeutics and Vanda Pharmaceuticals”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
eFFECTOR Therapeutics	$3.55 million	0.00	-$35.81 million	($13.08)	0.00
Vanda Pharmaceuticals	$192.64 million	1.49	$2.51 million	($0.19)	-25.84

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

57.7% of eFFECTOR Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 88.1% of Vanda Pharmaceuticals shares are held by institutional investors. 4.7% of eFFECTOR Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.9% of Vanda Pharmaceuticals shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for eFFECTOR Therapeutics and Vanda Pharmaceuticals, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
eFFECTOR Therapeutics	0	0	1	0	3.00
Vanda Pharmaceuticals	0	0	1	0	3.00

eFFECTOR Therapeutics presently has a consensus target price of $24.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1,999,900.00%. Vanda Pharmaceuticals has a consensus target price of $13.00, suggesting a potential upside of 164.77%. Given eFFECTOR Therapeutics’ higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe eFFECTOR Therapeutics is more favorable than Vanda Pharmaceuticals.

Profitability

This table compares eFFECTOR Therapeutics and Vanda Pharmaceuticals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
eFFECTOR Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	-146.23%
Vanda Pharmaceuticals	-6.00%	-2.01%	-1.68%

Risk & Volatility

eFFECTOR Therapeutics has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vanda Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.77, suggesting that its stock price is 23% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Vanda Pharmaceuticals beats eFFECTOR Therapeutics on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About eFFECTOR Therapeutics

eFFECTOR Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of selective translation regulator inhibitors (STRIs) for the treatment of cancer. The company's lead product candidates comprise Tomivosertib, an oral small-molecule inhibitor of MNK that is in phase 2b clinical trial for the treatment of patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer; and Zotatifin, a small molecule inhibitor of eukaryotic initiation factor 4A (eIF4E), which is in Phase 1/2 clinical trial to treat patients with solid tumors, as well as completed Phase 2a open-label expansion cohort in combination with fulvestrant and abemaciclib to treat patients with ER+ breast cancer. The company has a research collaboration and license agreement with Pfizer Inc. to research and develop small molecules that target eIF4E. eFFECTOR Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 2012 and is headquartered in Solana Beach, California.

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.