Alumis (NASDAQ:ALMS – Get Free Report) and Connect Biopharma (NASDAQ:CNTB – Get Free Report) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and risk.
Volatility and Risk
Alumis has a beta of -0.38, suggesting that its share price is 138% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Connect Biopharma has a beta of -0.16, suggesting that its share price is 116% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
58.7% of Connect Biopharma shares are held by institutional investors. 33.7% of Alumis shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 22.6% of Connect Biopharma shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Alumis and Connect Biopharma, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Alumis | 1 | 1 | 11 | 1 | 2.86 |
| Connect Biopharma | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 2.78 |
Alumis currently has a consensus target price of $33.27, indicating a potential upside of 421.52%. Connect Biopharma has a consensus target price of $5.88, indicating a potential upside of 656.02%. Given Connect Biopharma’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Connect Biopharma is more favorable than Alumis.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Alumis and Connect Biopharma”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Alumis | $7.40 million | 111.62 | -$243.32 million | ($3.86) | -1.65 |
| Connect Biopharma | $2.95 million | 16.57 | -$55.48 million | ($1.19) | -0.65 |
Connect Biopharma has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Alumis. Alumis is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Connect Biopharma, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Alumis and Connect Biopharma’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Alumis | -5,933.46% | -93.15% | -74.50% |
| Connect Biopharma | N/A | -165.41% | -121.58% |
Summary
Alumis beats Connect Biopharma on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Alumis
Our mission is to significantly improve the lives of patients by replacing broad immunosuppression with targeted therapies. Our name, Alumis, captures our mission to enlighten immunology, and is inspired by the words “allumer”-French for illuminate-and “immunis”-Latin for the immune system. We are a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company with an initial focus on developing our two Tyrosine Kinase 2 (TYK2) inhibitors: ESK-001, a second-generation inhibitor that we are developing to maximize target inhibition and optimize tolerability, and A-005, a central nervous system (CNS) penetrant molecule. ESK-001 has demonstrated significant therapeutic effect in our Phase 2 program in patients with PsO, which we define as moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis (PsO), and is currently being evaluated in an additional Phase 2 clinical trial in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), for which we expect to report results in 2026. With the favorable results in our Phase 2 clinical trial in PsO, we intend to initiate multiple Phase 3 clinical trials of ESK-001 in the second half of 2024 in this indication. TYK2 genetic mutations are associated with a strong protective effect in multiple sclerosis, motivating us to develop our second product candidate, A-005, as a CNS-penetrant, allosteric TYK2 inhibitor for neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases. In April 2024, we initiated our Phase 1 program of A-005 in healthy volunteers and expect to report initial results by the end of 2024. We utilize our proprietary precision data analytics platform, biological insights and team of experienced research and development experts to deepen our understanding of disease pathologies, accelerate research and development and increase the probability of clinical success. Our collective insights informed our selection of TYK2 as the target for our two lead programs. Beyond TYK2, our proprietary precision data analytics platform and drug discovery expertise have led to the identification of additional preclinical programs that exemplify our precision approach. We recognize that patients living with immune-mediated diseases need alternatives to currently available therapies. Despite recent advances and innovations in the treatment of immune-mediated diseases, many patients continue to suffer, cycling through currently approved therapies while looking for a solution that alleviates the debilitating impact of their disease without life-limiting side effects. Addressing the needs of these patients is why we exist. We are pioneering a precision approach that leverages insights derived from powerful data analytics to select the right target, right molecule, right indication, right patient, right endpoint and right combination to dramatically improve patient outcomes. We believe that combining our insights with an integrated approach to drug development will produce the next generation of treatments to address immune dysfunction. We were founded in January 2021 as a Delaware corporation under the name FL2021-001, Inc. We changed our name to Esker Therapeutics, Inc. in March 2021, and subsequently to Alumis Inc. in January 2022. Our principal executive offices are located at 280 East Grand Avenue, South San Francisco, California.
About Connect Biopharma
Connect Biopharma Holdings Limited, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of therapies for the treatment of T cell-driven inflammatory diseases. The company is building a pipeline of small molecules and antibodies using functional T cell assays to screen and discover potent product candidates against validated immune targets. Its lead product candidate is rademikibart (formerly CBP-201), an antibody designed to target interleukin-4 receptor alpha, which is a validated target for the treatment of inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis and asthma, currently under Phase 3 studies; and icanbelimod (formerly CBP-307), an oral small molecule Sphingosine 1-Phosphate Receptor 1 modulator, currently under Phase 2 clinical for the treatment of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. The company was founded in 2012 and is based in San Diego, California.
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