Comparing Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) and Affymax (OTCMKTS:AFFY)

Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) and Affymax (OTCMKTS:AFFY) are both medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, valuation and institutional ownership.

Risk and Volatility

Ionis Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.28, suggesting that its stock price is 72% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Affymax has a beta of 6.58, suggesting that its stock price is 558% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

93.9% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of Ionis Pharmaceuticals shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of Affymax shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Affymax’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ionis Pharmaceuticals	-64.25%	-100.05%	-15.70%
Affymax	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Affymax, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ionis Pharmaceuticals	1	5	13	1	2.70
Affymax	0	0	0	0	0.00

Ionis Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus target price of $59.56, suggesting a potential upside of 78.63%. Given Ionis Pharmaceuticals’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Ionis Pharmaceuticals is more favorable than Affymax.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Affymax”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ionis Pharmaceuticals	$705.14 million	7.52	-$366.29 million	($3.04)	-10.97
Affymax	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Affymax has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Ionis Pharmaceuticals.

Summary

Ionis Pharmaceuticals beats Affymax on 7 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ionis Pharmaceuticals

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. discovers and develops RNA-targeted therapeutics in the United States. The company offers SPINRAZA for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in pediatric and adult patients; TEGSEDI, an antisense injection for the treatment of polyneuropathy caused by hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis in adults; and WAYLIVRA, an antisense medicine for treatment for familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) and familial partial lipodystrophy. It also develops medicines for various indications that are in phase 3 study, including Eplontersen as a monthly self-administered subcutaneous injection to treat all types of ATTR; Olezarsen for patients with FCS and severe hypertriglyceridemia (SHTG); Donidalorsen for patients with hereditary angioedema; ION363 for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Tofersen to inhibit the production of superoxide dismutase 1; Pelacarsen for patients with established cardiovascular disease and elevated lipoprotein(a); and Bepirovirsen to inhibit the production of viral proteins associated with hepatitis B virus. In addition, the company develops IONIS-FB-LRx to inhibit the production of complement factor B and the alternative complement pathway; and ION224 to reduce the production of diacylglycerol acyltransferase 2. It has a strategic collaboration with Biogen for the treatment of neurological disorders; and collaboration and license agreement with Metagenomi, Inc, AstraZeneca, Bayer AG, GlaxoSmithKline plc, Novartis, Roche, Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB, and PTC Therapeutics. The company was incorporated in 1989 and is based in Carlsbad, California.

About Affymax

Affymax, Inc. does not have significant operations. Previously, it was developing drugs to enhance the treatment of serious and often life-threatening conditions in the United States. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in New York, New York.