Critical Review: Agios Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AGIO) versus Insmed (NASDAQ:INSM)

Agios Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AGIO) and Insmed (NASDAQ:INSM) are both healthcare companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, valuation and earnings.

Volatility and Risk

Agios Pharmaceuticals has a beta of 0.6, meaning that its share price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Insmed has a beta of 0.82, meaning that its share price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Agios Pharmaceuticals and Insmed’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Agios Pharmaceuticals	-418.24%	-35.67%	-33.06%
Insmed	-76.94%	-123.94%	-44.30%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Agios Pharmaceuticals and Insmed”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Agios Pharmaceuticals	$98.34 million	20.19	-$412.78 million	($7.01)	-4.74
Insmed	$606.42 million	41.10	-$1.28 billion	($4.11)	-27.77

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Agios Pharmaceuticals and Insmed, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Agios Pharmaceuticals	1	4	5	1	2.55
Insmed	1	0	22	2	3.00

Agios Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus price target of $41.75, indicating a potential upside of 25.56%. Insmed has a consensus price target of $200.57, indicating a potential upside of 75.72%. Given Insmed’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Insmed is more favorable than Agios Pharmaceuticals.

Summary

Insmed beats Agios Pharmaceuticals on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Agios Pharmaceuticals

Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, discovers and develops medicines in the field of cellular metabolism in the United States. Its lead product includes PYRUKYND (mitapivat), an activator of wild-type and mutant pyruvate kinase (PK), enzymes for the treatment of hemolytic anemias. The company develops AG-946, a PK activator for treating lower-risk myelodysplastic syndrome and hemolytic anemias; and AG-181, a phenylalanine hydroxylase stabilizer for the treatment of phenylketonuria. Its preclinical product is siRNA for the treatment of polycythemia vera, a rare blood disorder. Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

About Insmed

Insmed Incorporated is a global biopharmaceutical company on a mission to transform the lives of patients with serious and rare diseases. Insmed’s first commercial product is ARIKAYCE® (amikacin liposome inhalation suspension), which is approved in the United States for the treatment of Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) lung disease as part of a combination antibacterial drug regimen for adult patients with limited or no alternative treatment options. MAC lung disease is a rare and often chronic infection that can cause irreversible lung damage and can be fatal. Insmed’s earlier-stage clinical pipeline includes INS1007, a novel oral reversible inhibitor of dipeptidyl peptidase 1 with therapeutic potential in non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis and other inflammatory diseases, and INS1009, an inhaled formulation of a treprostinil prodrug that may offer a differentiated product profile for rare pulmonary disorders, including pulmonary arterial hypertension.