Critical Comparison: Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) versus USANA Health Sciences (NYSE:USNA)

USANA Health Sciences (NYSE:USNA) and Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, profitability, earnings and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

USANA Health Sciences has a beta of 0.66, meaning that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Nektar Therapeutics has a beta of 1.27, meaning that its stock price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares USANA Health Sciences and Nektar Therapeutics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
USANA Health Sciences	1.86%	6.97%	5.00%
Nektar Therapeutics	-192.87%	-456.53%	-57.80%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

54.3% of USANA Health Sciences shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.9% of Nektar Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. 0.6% of USANA Health Sciences shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.3% of Nektar Therapeutics shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares USANA Health Sciences and Nektar Therapeutics”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
USANA Health Sciences	$854.50 million	0.42	$42.03 million	$0.88	22.24
Nektar Therapeutics	$98.43 million	11.92	-$118.96 million	($7.97)	-7.24

USANA Health Sciences has higher revenue and earnings than Nektar Therapeutics. Nektar Therapeutics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than USANA Health Sciences, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings for USANA Health Sciences and Nektar Therapeutics, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
USANA Health Sciences	2	2	0	0	1.50
Nektar Therapeutics	1	1	6	0	2.63

USANA Health Sciences presently has a consensus price target of $36.00, indicating a potential upside of 83.98%. Nektar Therapeutics has a consensus price target of $106.33, indicating a potential upside of 84.32%. Given Nektar Therapeutics’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Nektar Therapeutics is more favorable than USANA Health Sciences.

About USANA Health Sciences

USANA Health Sciences, Inc. develops, manufactures, and sells science-based nutritional, personal care, and skincare products in the Asia Pacific, the Americas, and Europe. The company offers USANA nutritional products that comprise essentials/CellSentials, such as vitamin and mineral supplements that provide a foundation of total body nutrition for various age groups; optimizers consisting of targeted supplements that are designed to meet cardiovascular, skeletal/structural, and digestive health needs; and food that include meal replacement shakes, snack bars, and other related products. It also provides Celavive, a skin care regimen for various skin care types and ethnicities; and other products for prenatal, infant, and young child age groups. In addition, the company offers materials and online tools to assist associates in building their businesses, as well as in marketing products. It offers its products through retail stores and online. The company has a research collaboration agreement with Beijing University of Chinese Medicine; and National Sports Training Bureau. USANA Health Sciences, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing medicines in the field of immunotherapy in the United States and internationally. The company is developing rezpegaldesleukin, a cytokine Treg stimulant that is in phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and ulcerative colitis, as well as phase 2b clinical trial to treat atopic dermatitis and psoriasis; and NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist, which is in phase 1 clinical trial to boost the immune system's natural ability to fight cancer. It has collaboration agreements with Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd.; AstraZeneca AB; UCB Pharma S.A.; F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd; Bausch Health Companies Inc.; Pfizer Inc.; Amgen Inc.; UCB Pharma (Biogen); Bristol-Myers Squibb Company; Merck KGaA; and SFJ Pharmaceuticals, Inc. The company was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.