Critical Survey: Alvotech (NASDAQ:ALVO) and argenx (NASDAQ:ARGX)

argenx (NASDAQ:ARGX) and Alvotech (NASDAQ:ALVO) are both medical companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, risk and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares argenx and Alvotech’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
argenx	-2.11%	-1.45%	-1.29%
Alvotech	-123.47%	N/A	-35.87%

Volatility and Risk

argenx has a beta of 0.58, meaning that its share price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Alvotech has a beta of -0.19, meaning that its share price is 119% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

60.3% of argenx shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.4% of argenx shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Alvotech shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares argenx and Alvotech”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
argenx	$1.27 billion	30.96	-$295.05 million	($0.88)	-734.60
Alvotech	$93.38 million	41.16	-$551.73 million	($1.85)	-6.89

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for argenx and Alvotech, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
argenx	1	2	18	1	2.86
Alvotech	0	0	1	0	3.00

argenx presently has a consensus target price of $658.39, indicating a potential upside of 1.85%. Alvotech has a consensus target price of $18.00, indicating a potential upside of 41.18%. Given Alvotech’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Alvotech is more favorable than argenx.

Summary

argenx beats Alvotech on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About argenx

argenx SE, a biotechnology company, engages in the developing of various therapies for the treatment of autoimmune diseases in the United States, Japan, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and China. Its lead product candidate is efgartigimod for the treatment of patients with myasthenia gravis, immune thrombocytopenia, pemphigus vulgaris, generalized myasthenia gravis, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, thyroid eye disease, bullous pemphigoid, myositis, primary sjögren’s syndrome, post-covid postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, membranous nephropathy, lupus nephropathy, anca-associated vasculitis, and antibody mediated rejection; ENHANZE SC; Empasiprubart for multifocal motor neuropath, delayed graft function, and dermatomyositis; and ARGX-119 for congenital myasthenic syndrome and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The company is developing ARGX-213 targets FcRn; ARGX-121 and ARGX-220 targets immune system; ARGX-109 targets IL-6; ARGX-118 for inflammation; and ARGX-109, as well as cusatuzumab, ARGX-112, ARGX-114, and ARGX-115. It owns VYVGART; VYVGART HYTRULO; VYVDURA; ARGENX; ABDEG; NHANCE; SIMPLE ANTIBODY; and ARGENXMEDHUB. The company has strategic partnership with AbbVie S.À.R.L., Zai Lab Limited, and LEO Pharma A/S; and collaboration and license agreement with Genor Biopharma Co. Ltd, Université Catholique de Louvain, Sopartec S.A., NYU Langone Health, Leiden University Medical Center, AgomAb Therapeutics NV, Broteio Pharma B.V., VIB vzw, University of Texas, BioWa, Inc., and Shire International GmbH. It has collaboration agreement with Genmab A/S to discover, develop, and commercialize novel therapeutic antibodies with applications in immunology and oncology, as well as a strategic collaboration with IQVIA Holdings Inc. to provide safety systems and services. argenx SE was incorporated in 2008 and is based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

About Alvotech

Alvotech, through its subsidiaries, develops and manufactures biosimilar medicines for patients worldwide. It offers biosimilar products in the therapeutic areas of autoimmune, eye, and bone disorders, as well as cancer. The company's lead program is AVT02, a high concentration formulation biosimilar to Humira to treat various inflammatory conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, plaque psoriasis, and other indications; AVT04, a biosimilar to Stelara to treat various inflammatory conditions comprising psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, plaque psoriasis, and other indications; AVT06, a biosimilar to Eylea to treat various conditions, such as age-related macular degeneration, macular edema, and diabetic retinopathy; and AVT03, a biosimilar to Xgeva and Prolia, which is in the pre-clinical phase to treat prevent bone fracture, spinal cord compression, and the need for radiation or bone surgery in patients with certain types of cancer, as well as prevent bone loss and increase bone mass. In addition, it offers AVT05, a biosimilar to Simponi and Simponi Aria, which is in early phase development to treat various inflammatory conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ulcerative colitis, and other indications; AVT16, a biosimilar to an Entyvio product; AVT23, a biosimilar to Xolair, which is in late-stage development to treat nasal polyps; and AVT33, a biosimilar to an Keytruda product. Alvotech was founded in 2013 and is based in Luxembourg, Luxembourg.