NEXGEL (NASDAQ:NXGL) vs. NeuroPace (NASDAQ:NPCE) Head-To-Head Analysis

NEXGEL (NASDAQ:NXGL) and NeuroPace (NASDAQ:NPCE) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Volatility and Risk

NEXGEL has a beta of 0.76, suggesting that its share price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, NeuroPace has a beta of 2.05, suggesting that its share price is 105% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for NEXGEL and NeuroPace, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
NEXGEL	0	0	0	0	0.00
NeuroPace	0	1	6	0	2.86

NeuroPace has a consensus price target of $14.50, indicating a potential upside of 27.75%. Given NeuroPace’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe NeuroPace is more favorable than NEXGEL.

Profitability

This table compares NEXGEL and NeuroPace’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
NEXGEL	-52.60%	-71.19%	-34.79%
NeuroPace	-36.74%	-205.41%	-28.29%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

2.2% of NEXGEL shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.8% of NeuroPace shares are held by institutional investors. 24.9% of NEXGEL shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 22.2% of NeuroPace shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares NEXGEL and NeuroPace”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
NEXGEL	$6.73 million	4.83	-$3.16 million	($0.58)	-8.26
NeuroPace	$76.45 million	4.43	-$32.96 million	($1.00)	-11.35

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

Summary

NeuroPace beats NEXGEL on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About NEXGEL

NEXGEL, Inc. manufactures high water content, electron beam cross-linked, and aqueous polymer hydrogels and gels. Its products are used for wound care, medical diagnostics, transdermal drug delivery, and cosmetics. The company was formerly known as AquaMed Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to NEXGEL, Inc. in November 2019. The company was incorporated in 2009 and is based in Langhorne, Pennsylvania.

About NeuroPace

NeuroPace, Inc. operates as a medical device company in the United States. The company develops RNS system, a brain-responsive neuromodulation system that delivers personalized, real-time treatment at the seizure source for treating medically refractory focal epilepsy. It also records continuous brain activity data and enables clinicians to monitor patients in person and remotely. Its RNS System includes RNS neurostimulator, cortical strip and depth leads, and Patient Remote Monitor, as well as other implantable and non-implantable accessories. The company sells its products to hospital facilities for initial RNS system implant procedures and for replacement procedures. NeuroPace, Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.