Contrasting InspireMD (NYSE:NSPR) and Minerva Surgical (NASDAQ:UTRS)

Minerva Surgical (NASDAQ:UTRS) and InspireMD (NYSE:NSPR) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and institutional ownership.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Minerva Surgical and InspireMD, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Minerva Surgical	0	0	0	0	0.00
InspireMD	0	0	1	0	3.00

InspireMD has a consensus target price of $4.00, suggesting a potential upside of 112.77%. Given InspireMD’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe InspireMD is more favorable than Minerva Surgical.

Profitability

This table compares Minerva Surgical and InspireMD’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Minerva Surgical	N/A	N/A	N/A
InspireMD	-413.96%	-69.42%	-57.68%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

44.8% of InspireMD shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.5% of Minerva Surgical shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 34.1% of InspireMD shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Minerva Surgical and InspireMD”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Minerva Surgical	$51.69 million	0.00	-$34.11 million	($8.21)	0.00
InspireMD	$7.78 million	10.24	-$19.92 million	($0.84)	-2.24

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

Risk & Volatility

Minerva Surgical has a beta of 2.74, indicating that its stock price is 174% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, InspireMD has a beta of 0.69, indicating that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

InspireMD beats Minerva Surgical on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Minerva Surgical

Minerva Surgical, Inc., a commercial-stage medical technology company, develops, manufactures, and commercializes minimally invasive solutions to meet the uterine healthcare needs of women in the United States. The company provides Minerva ES Endometrial Ablation System and Genesys HTA Endometrial Ablation System, which are endometrial ablation devices; Symphion Tissue Removal System, a minimally invasive uterine tissue removal system to combine bladeless tissue resection and coagulation, continuous visualization, and intrauterine pressure monitoring; and Resectr Tissue Resection Device, a handheld surgical instrument to enable the hysteroscopic removal and diagnosis of endometrial polyps. Its devices are utilized by obstetrician-gynecologists in various medical treatment settings, including hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, and physician offices. The company was incorporated in 2008 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.

About InspireMD

InspireMD, Inc., a medical device company, focuses on the development and commercialization of MicroNet stent platform technology for the treatment of vascular and coronary diseases in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific. The company offers CGuard carotid embolic prevention system (EPS) for use in carotid artery applications; CGuard Prime Stent System, a mesh-covered self-expanding carotid stent; and SwitchGuard NPS, a non-invasive transcarotid artery revascularization device; as well as treating acute stroke with tandem lesions. InspireMD, Inc. has a strategic agreement with Jacobs Institute to execute an early feasibility study of CGuard Prime for the treatment of acute stroke patients with tandem lesions. The company sells its products through local distribution partners. InspireMD, Inc. was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel.