Based on key financial metrics such as the price-to-sales ratio, shareholder yield and the price-earnings ratio, the following 6 stocks made the list for top value stocks in the Biotechnology & Medical Research industry. Those looking for value stocks to add to their portfolio may want to use this list as a starting point for further investment research.
Latest Biotechnology & Medical Research Stock News
Before choosing which top Biotechnology & Medical Research stock to buy, be sure to conduct proper due diligence: analyze various financial metrics and look at historical data, public statements and news coverage.
The Biotechnology and Medical Research sub-industry has a positive outlook, a historically defensive sub-industry. Drug sales are anticipated to have high growth, primarily driven by COVID-19 therapeutics, the continued adoption of many new and innovative therapies, a favorable M&A environment, and a low prevalence of patent expirations in 2022. Additionally, companies could see prescription growth pick up as in-person physician visits return to pre-pandemic levels. As COVID-19 variants have emerged, vaccine boosters have been offered in order to increase efficacy. Due to this, repeat vaccinations will likely be necessary for lifelong immunity which would provide a long-lasting and significant source of revenue for lead vaccine developers. Aside from vaccines, the biotech industry is dependent on the volume of new therapy approvals. The FDA’s heavy focus on COVID-19 could slow the approvals on non-COVID-19 therapies. Despite this, the biotech industry will likely see promising sales growth over the next five years as it usually takes at least five years for new drugs to reach peak sales levels. Approval activity has also been on the rise recently. Mergers and acquisitions activity is expected to remain low as a more activist Federal Trade Commission (led by Lina Khan) could be more skeptical of proposed mergers. Year to date through June 30, the S&P 1500 Biotech Index was down 1.6%, vs. a 20.5% decline for the S&P 1500 Composite Index. In 2021, the Biotech Index rose 8.2%, vs. a 26.7% gain for the Composite Index.
Why Focus on Undervalued Biotechnology & Medical Research Stocks?
Value investors seek to buy stocks at a discount to their intrinsic value. Long-term returns show that such strategies are advantageous. Value stocks, as a group, tend to outperform growth stocks over extended periods of time. Typically, value investors perform financial analysis of numerous metrics, don’t follow the herd and are long-term investors.
AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade is derived from a stock’s Value Score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.
What Goes Into AAII’s Value Grade?
Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data as well as the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movement. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors with that task.
AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A–F grades for more than just value. It is possible for a stock to appear cheap based on one valuation metric but appear expensive on another. It is also possible for one valuation ratio to be associated with outperforming stocks during certain periods of time but not others. Some stocks may even have null values for certain metrics like the price-earnings ratio or the price-to-book ratio but not others. An example of this would be a company with losses instead of profits or a negative book value because of heavy borrowing. Negative earnings or book value result in non-meaningful ratios that are left blank or null.
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6 Undervalued Biotechnology & Medical Research Stocks
Of course, there are countless value stocks that are worth mentioning, but this is a concise list of the top 6 undervalued stocks in the Biotechnology & Medical Research industry for Friday, September 22, 2023. Let’s take a closer look at their individual scores to see how they measure up against each other and the Biotechnology & Medical Research industry median.
| Company | Ticker | Price/Sales | Price/Earnings | EV/EBITDA | Shareholder Yield | Price/Book Value | Price/Free Cash Flow | Value Grade |
| AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA) | AEZS | 1.45 | na | 1.8 | 0.0% | 0.44 | na | A |
| Inotiv Inc | NOTV | 0.13 | na | 9.5 | (0.8%) | 0.28 | na | A |
| Revelation Biosciences Inc | REVB | na | na | 1.7 | (764.4%) | 0.35 | na | B |
| Surrozen Inc | SRZN | 1.10 | na | 0.5 | 13.9% | 0.25 | na | A |
| Theriva Biologics Inc | TOVX | na | na | 0.7 | 4.3% | 0.17 | na | A |
| Exicure Inc | XCUR | 0.27 | 0.6 | 2.0 | (87.2%) | 0.65 | na | A |
The Value Grade is assigned based on how each stock’s composite valuation compares to all other stocks.
The process for assigning grades starts with each variable for a given stock. The percentile rankings for all valid ratios that a stock has are calculated. So, for instance, a stock could have a price-to-book ranking in the 43rd percentile, a price-earnings ranking in the 67th percentile, a price-to-sales ranking in the 23rd percentile, etc. Then, those rankings are averaged for each stock. (A minimum of two valid variables are required, though all six will be used if available.)
Once the average of the individual variables is calculated, that average is ranked against all stocks. Put another way, each stock’s composite valuation is compared to all other stocks. These ranks are then sorted into quintiles from the cheapest 20% (a grade of A) to the most expensive 20% (a grade of F).
As always, we recommend that you conduct proper due diligence and research before investing in any security. We also suggest that investors utilize numerous grades, not just value, when it comes to deciding whether a company is a good fit for their allocation needs.
AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA)’s Value Grade
Value Grade:
| Metric | Score | AEZS | Industry Median |
| Price/Sales | 47 | 1.45 | 7.59 |
| Price/Earnings | na | na | 20.4 |
| EV/EBITDA | 5 | 1.8 | 0.8 |
| Shareholder Yield | 49 | 0.0% | (7.2%) |
| Price/Book Value | 9 | 0.44 | 1.43 |
| Price/Free Cash Flow | na | na | 20.1 |
Aeterna Zentaris Inc. is a Canada-based specialty biopharmaceutical company. The Company is developing and commercializing a diversified portfolio of pharmaceutical and diagnostic products focused on areas of significant unmet medical need. The Company's lead product, macimorelin (Macrilen, Ghryvelin), is an oral test indicated for the diagnosis of adult growth hormone deficiency (AGHD). The Company is also leveraging the clinical and compelling safety profile of macimorelin to develop it for the diagnosis of childhood-onset growth hormone deficiency (CGHD). The Company is engaged in the development of its therapeutic asset and has established a pre-clinical development pipeline to potentially address unmet medical needs across a number of indications, including neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD), Parkinson's disease (PD), hypoparathyroidism and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Its therapeutic development pipeline includes AIM Biologicals, AEZS-150 and AEZS-130.
Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.
AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA) has a Value Score of 87, which is considered to be undervalued.
When you look at AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA)’s price-to-sales ratio at 1.45 compared to the industry median at 7.59, this company has a lower price relative to revenue compared to its peers. This could make AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA)’s stock more attractive for value investors.
Now, let’s assess AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA)’s EV/EBITDA ratio, also known as enterprise multiple. At 1.8, when compared to the industry median of 0.8, the company may be considered overvalued in relation to its peers. Value investors could use the enterprise multiple to identify stocks that are considered overvalued or undervalued relative to their industry.
Shareholder yield is the sum of a stock’s dividend yield (paid over previous 12 months minus special dividends) and the percentage of net share buybacks over the previous 12 months. AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA)’s shareholder yield is higher than its industry median ratio of (7.23%). Value investors may look for an attractive shareholder yield because it can be a powerful tool for identifying if the company has a good management team.
As one of the most common value metrics, the price-to-book ratio evaluates a company’s current market price relative to its book value. AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA)’s price-to-book ratio is lower than its industry median ratio of 1.43. This could make AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA) more attractive to investors looking for a new addition to their portfolio.
Inotiv Inc’s Value Grade
Value Grade:
| Metric | Score | NOTV | Industry Median |
| Price/Sales | 5 | 0.13 | 7.59 |
| Price/Earnings | na | na | 20.4 |
| EV/EBITDA | 47 | 9.5 | 0.8 |
| Shareholder Yield | 58 | (0.8%) | (7.2%) |
| Price/Book Value | 5 | 0.28 | 1.43 |
| Price/Free Cash Flow | na | na | 20.1 |
Inotiv, Inc. is an international contract research company that is providing nonclinical and analytical drug discovery and development services to the pharmaceutical and medical device industries and selling a range of research-quality animals and diets to the same industries as well as academia and government clients. Its products and services focus on bringing new drugs and medical devices through the discovery and preclinical phases of development. It operates through two segments: Discovery and Safety Assessment (DSA) and Research Models and Services (RMS). Its DSA segment supports the discovery, nonclinical development, and clinical development needs of researchers and clinicians for primarily small molecule drug candidates, as well as biotherapeutics and biomedical devices. Its RMS segment offers access to a range of small and large research models for basic research and drug discovery and development, as well as specialized models for specific diseases and therapeutic areas.
Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.
Inotiv Inc has a Value Score of 85, which is considered to be undervalued.
Inotiv Inc’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its peers. This could make Inotiv Inc less attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.43.
You can read more about Inotiv Inc’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.
Revelation Biosciences Inc’s Value Grade
Value Grade:
| Metric | Score | REVB | Industry Median |
| Price/Sales | na | na | 7.59 |
| Price/Earnings | na | na | 20.4 |
| EV/EBITDA | 5 | 1.7 | 0.8 |
| Shareholder Yield | 100 | (764.4%) | (7.2%) |
| Price/Book Value | 6 | 0.35 | 1.43 |
| Price/Free Cash Flow | na | na | 20.1 |
Revelation Biosciences, Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development of innate immune system therapeutics and diagnostics. Its therapeutic candidates are based on the active ingredient phosphorylated hexaacyl disaccharide (PHAD), a synthetic version of monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA) that is known to stimulate Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4). Its product candidates include REVTx-300, which is being developed as a potential therapy for the prevention and treatment of acute organ injury and chronic organ disease; REVTx-100, which is being developed for the prevention and treatment of infections, including healthcare-associated bacterial infections resulting from surgery, severe burns, and antibiotic resistance; REVTx-200, which is being developed as a potential intranasal therapy that is administered with a traditional commercially available intramuscular (IM) vaccine, and REVTx-99b, which is being developed as a treatment for food allergies.
Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.
Revelation Biosciences Inc has a Value Score of 71, which is considered to be undervalued.
Revelation Biosciences Inc’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its peers. This could make Revelation Biosciences Inc less attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.43.
You can read more about Revelation Biosciences Inc’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.
Surrozen Inc’s Value Grade
Value Grade:
| Metric | Score | SRZN | Industry Median |
| Price/Sales | 39 | 1.10 | 7.59 |
| Price/Earnings | na | na | 20.4 |
| EV/EBITDA | 2 | 0.5 | 0.8 |
| Shareholder Yield | 6 | 13.9% | (7.2%) |
| Price/Book Value | 4 | 0.25 | 1.43 |
| Price/Free Cash Flow | na | na | 20.1 |
Surrozen, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company. The Company is engaged in discovering and developing drug candidates to selectively modulate the Wnt pathway, a critical mediator of tissue repair, in a range of organs and tissues. The Company's lead product candidates are multi-specific, antibody-based therapeutics that mimic the roles of naturally occurring Wnt or R-spondin proteins, which are involved in activation and enhancement of the Wnt pathway. Its two technologies, Surrozen Wnt signal Activating Protein (SWAP) and Surrozen Wnt signal Enhancers Engineered for Tissue Specificity (SWEETS), enable it to potently and selectively modulate Wnt signaling through the generation of Wnt and R-spondin mimetics. SWAP molecules are designed to mimic the activity of naturally occurring Wnt proteins. SWEETS molecules are designed to amplify the body?s response to naturally occurring Wnt proteins. Its product candidates include SZN-1326, SZN-043 and SZN-413.
Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.
Surrozen Inc has a Value Score of 99, which is considered to be undervalued.
Surrozen Inc’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its peers. This could make Surrozen Inc less attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.43.
You can read more about Surrozen Inc’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.
Theriva Biologics Inc’s Value Grade
Value Grade:
| Metric | Score | TOVX | Industry Median |
| Price/Sales | na | na | 7.59 |
| Price/Earnings | na | na | 20.4 |
| EV/EBITDA | 3 | 0.7 | 0.8 |
| Shareholder Yield | 23 | 4.3% | (7.2%) |
| Price/Book Value | 2 | 0.17 | 1.43 |
| Price/Free Cash Flow | na | na | 20.1 |
Theriva Biologics, Inc. is a diversified clinical-stage company developing therapeutics designed to treat cancer and related diseases in areas of high unmet need. The Company is advancing a new oncolytic adenovirus platform designed for intravenous (IV), intravitreal and antitumoral delivery to trigger tumor cell death, improve access of co-administered cancer therapies to the tumor, and promote a robust and sustained anti-tumor response by the patients immune system. The Company?s lead candidates are: VCN-01, an oncolytic adenovirus designed to replicate selectively and aggressively within tumor cells, and to degrade the tumor stroma barrier; SYN-004 (ribaxamase) which is designed to degrade used IV beta-lactam antibiotics within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract to prevent microbiome damage, and SYN-020, a recombinant oral formulation of the enzyme intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP) produced under cGMP conditions and intended to treat both local GI and systemic diseases.
Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.
Theriva Biologics Inc has a Value Score of 99, which is considered to be undervalued.
Theriva Biologics Inc’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its peers. This could make Theriva Biologics Inc less attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.43.
You can read more about Theriva Biologics Inc’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.
Exicure Inc’s Value Grade
Value Grade:
| Metric | Score | XCUR | Industry Median |
| Price/Sales | 11 | 0.27 | 7.59 |
| Price/Earnings | 1 | 0.6 | 20.4 |
| EV/EBITDA | 6 | 2.0 | 0.8 |
| Shareholder Yield | 95 | (87.2%) | (7.2%) |
| Price/Book Value | 16 | 0.65 | 1.43 |
| Price/Free Cash Flow | na | na | 20.1 |
Exicure, Inc. is an early-stage biotechnology company focused on developing nucleic acid therapies targeting ribonucleic acid against validated targets. The Company is developing nucleic acid therapies targeting ribonucleic acid (RNA) to address both genetic and non-genetic neurological disorders. Its lead program is a non-opioid pain analgesic directed against the genetically validated target SCN9A. It is engaged in discovery efforts across a range of indications and therapeutic targets, such as pain using non-opioid analgesics, as well as rare neurological genetic disorders, including Huntington's disease, Angelman Syndrome, Batten disease, spinocerebellar ataxia, and sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The Company focuses on pursuing out-licensing opportunities for its clinical asset, cavrotolimod, as well as for its preclinical candidates, including the SCN9A program for neuropathic pain.
Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are value and so on.
Exicure Inc has a Value Score of 90, which is considered to be undervalued.
Exicure Inc’s price-earnings ratio is 0.6 compared to the industry median at 20.4. This means that it has a lower price relative to its earnings compared to its peers. This makes Exicure Inc more attractive for value investors.
Exicure Inc’s price-to-book ratio is higher than its peers. This could make Exicure Inc less attractive for value investors when compared to the industry median at 1.43.
You can read more about Exicure Inc’s key financial metrics like shareholder yield, price-to-free-cash-flow and EV/EBITDA ratio, or learn more about its Momentum and Growth Grades, by subscribing to A+ Investor.
Other Biotechnology & Medical Research Stock Grades
Value is just one of the five Stock Grades included in our A+ Investor service. AAII members can see the top-graded stocks—those with grades of A or B for value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality—on the A+ Stock Grades Screener.
Also, if you want full access to all of AAII’s premium services, you can subscribe to one convenient bundled plan called AAII Platinum where you can try out A+ Investor, AAII Dividend Investing, the Stock Superstars Report, Growth Investing and VMQ Stocks. With the other premium services, you can dive deep into additional metrics, portfolios, commentary and information about Biotechnology & Medical Research stocks as well as other industrys.
Choosing Which of the 6 Best Biotechnology & Medical Research Stocks Is Right for You
Choosing which value stocks to invest in will ultimately depend on your individual goals and allocation; however, comparing similar value stocks in the same industry can help you analyze which might be better investments for you in the long run. So, let’s take a look at the Value Grade for all of our stocks.
- AEterna Zentaris Inc. (USA) stock has a Value Grade of A.
- Inotiv Inc stock has a Value Grade of A.
- Revelation Biosciences Inc stock has a Value Grade of B.
- Surrozen Inc stock has a Value Grade of A.
- Theriva Biologics Inc stock has a Value Grade of A.
- Exicure Inc stock has a Value Grade of A.
Now that you have a bit more background about each of the 6 undervalued stocks in the Biotechnology & Medical Research industry as well as their overall grades, it’s time for you to conduct additional research to see if these could fit your portfolio needs based on your goals and risk tolerance. AAII can help you figure out both and identify which investments align with what works best for you.
We do so through a program of education that teaches you to invest for yourself and become an effective manager of your own wealth—no more relying on others for your financial independence. You can rely on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis that makes you a better investor.
A+ Investor adds to that qualitative teaching by giving you a powerful data suite that helps you whittle down investment decisions to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.
Additional Resources About Biotechnology & Medical Research Stocks
Want to learn more about Biotechnology & Medical Research stocks to see if they could be the right investment for you? Check out some additional resources and articles to help you on your financial journey.
- 6 Undervalued Biotechnology & Medical Research Stocks for Friday, September 22
- 6 Undervalued Biotechnology & Medical Research Stocks for Thursday, September 21
- Why AnaptysBio Inc’s (ANAB) Stock Is Down 4.72%
- Why Arcutis Biotherapeutics Inc’s (ARQT) Stock Is Down 4.08%
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