Analyzing Panbela Therapeutics (OTCMKTS:PBLA) and Zymeworks (NASDAQ:ZYME)

Zymeworks (NASDAQ:ZYME) and Panbela Therapeutics (OTCMKTS:PBLA) are both small-cap manufacturing companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership and risk.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Zymeworks and Panbela Therapeutics”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Zymeworks	$105.96 million	15.48	-$81.13 million	($1.37)	-16.40
Panbela Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	-$25.26 million	($71.13)	-0.00

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Zymeworks and Panbela Therapeutics, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Zymeworks	1	1	8	1	2.82
Panbela Therapeutics	0	0	0	0	0.00

Zymeworks presently has a consensus price target of $37.33, suggesting a potential upside of 66.21%. Given Zymeworks’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Zymeworks is more favorable than Panbela Therapeutics.

Volatility and Risk

Zymeworks has a beta of 1.13, indicating that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Panbela Therapeutics has a beta of 42.64, indicating that its stock price is 4,164% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Zymeworks and Panbela Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Zymeworks	-126.92%	-37.97%	-25.31%
Panbela Therapeutics	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional & Insider Ownership

92.9% of Zymeworks shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 4.4% of Panbela Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 33.5% of Zymeworks shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Panbela Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Zymeworks beats Panbela Therapeutics on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Zymeworks

Zymeworks Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes biotherapeutics for the treatment of cancer. The company’s lead product candidates include zanidatamab, a novel bispecific antibody that is in Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of biliary tract, gastroesophageal adenocarcinomas, and breast cancer; and ZW49, a biparatopic anti- human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) antibody-drug conjugate that is in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of advanced or metastatic HER2-expressing tumors. The company has strategic partnerships with Merck Sharp & Dohme Research Ltd.; Eli Lilly and Company; Bristol-Myers Squibb company; GlaxoSmithKline Intellectual Property Development Ltd.; Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd.; Janssen Biotech, Inc.; and BeiGene, Ltd. It also has licensing and research collaboration with LEO Pharma A/S to discover and develop bispecific antibodies; and Iconic Therapeutics, Inc. Zymeworks Inc. was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About Panbela Therapeutics

Panbela Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of disruptive therapeutics for the treatment of patients with urgent unmet medical needs. The company’s lead product candidates are Ivospemin (SBP-101), a proprietary polyamine analogue, which has completed Phase Ia/Ib clinical trial for the treatment of patients with metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; Flynpovi, a combination of eflornithine (CPP-1X) and sulindac which is in Phase III clinical trials; and Eflornithine, an enzyme-activated irreversible inhibitor of the enzyme ornithine decarboxylase, currently under Phase I/II trial. It has a research agreement with the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine for the development of ivospemin. The company was formerly known as Sun BioPharma, Inc. and changed its name to Panbela Therapeutics, Inc. in December 2020. Panbela Therapeutics, Inc. was incorporated in 2011 and is based in Waconia, Minnesota.