Kazia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:KZIA) and Ensysce Biosciences (NASDAQ:ENSC) Critical Analysis

Ensysce Biosciences (NASDAQ:ENSC) and Kazia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:KZIA) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and dividends.

Risk and Volatility

Ensysce Biosciences has a beta of 0.64, indicating that its share price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kazia Therapeutics has a beta of 2.28, indicating that its share price is 128% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

5.6% of Ensysce Biosciences shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 30.9% of Kazia Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 7.9% of Ensysce Biosciences shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of Kazia Therapeutics shares are held by company 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 Ensysce Biosciences and Kazia Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ensysce Biosciences	-179.26%	-292.81%	-158.83%
Kazia Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Ensysce Biosciences and Kazia Therapeutics”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ensysce Biosciences	$2.23 million	2.02	-$10.61 million	($13.39)	-0.24
Kazia Therapeutics	$2.31 million	2.16	-$17.56 million	N/A	N/A

Ensysce Biosciences has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Kazia Therapeutics.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Ensysce Biosciences and Kazia Therapeutics, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ensysce Biosciences	0	0	0	0	0.00
Kazia Therapeutics	0	0	2	0	3.00

Kazia Therapeutics has a consensus price target of $11.50, indicating a potential upside of 1,061.26%. Given Kazia Therapeutics’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Kazia Therapeutics is more favorable than Ensysce Biosciences.

Summary

Kazia Therapeutics beats Ensysce Biosciences on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ensysce Biosciences

Ensysce Biosciences, Inc., a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, engages in developing various prescription drugs for severe pain relief in opioid misuse, abuse, and overdose in the United States. It develops products using Trypsin Activated Abuse Protection (TAAP) platform, an abuse-resistant opioid prodrug technology; and Multi-Pill Abuse Resistance (MPAR) platform, an over-dose protection opioid prodrug technology. The company is developing PF614, a TAAP oxycodone prodrug candidate for the treatment of acute or chronic pain; and PF614-MPAR, a combination product of PF614 and nafamostat for overdose protection against excessive oral ingestion, as well as an oral and inhalation drug product of nafamostat for use against coronaviral infections and other pulmonary diseases, such as cystic fibrosis. It is also developing PF614, an extended-release oxycodone-derivative that releases clinically effective oxycodone; PF329 for pain with abuse protection; PF8001 and PF8026 are extended and immediate-release prodrugs of amphetamine for ADHD; and PF9001 to treat Opioid use disorder. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in La Jolla, California.

About Kazia Therapeutics

Kazia Therapeutics Limited operates as an oncology-focused biotechnology company. The company’s lead development candidate is Paxalisib, a small molecule, brain-penetrant inhibitor of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, which is developed as a potential therapy for glioblastoma. It also develops EVT801, a small-molecule selective inhibitor of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 3. The company was formerly known as Novogen Limited and changed its name to Kazia Therapeutics Limited in November 2017. Kazia Therapeutics Limited was incorporated in 1994 and is based in Sydney, Australia.