Financial Contrast: Pulmonx (NASDAQ:LUNG) and Talkspace (NASDAQ:TALK)

Pulmonx (NASDAQ:LUNG) and Talkspace (NASDAQ:TALK) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Pulmonx and Talkspace’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Pulmonx	-61.91%	-77.58%	-37.90%
Talkspace	1.98%	3.75%	3.17%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

91.0% of Pulmonx shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 57.4% of Talkspace shares are held by institutional investors. 6.8% of Pulmonx shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 23.5% of Talkspace shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Pulmonx and Talkspace”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Pulmonx	$83.79 million	0.72	-$56.39 million	($1.41)	-1.04
Talkspace	$187.59 million	3.33	$1.15 million	$0.03	125.67

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Pulmonx and Talkspace, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Pulmonx	1	4	5	0	2.40
Talkspace	0	3	4	0	2.57

Pulmonx currently has a consensus target price of $6.81, indicating a potential upside of 363.07%. Talkspace has a consensus target price of $4.88, indicating a potential upside of 29.31%. Given Pulmonx’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Pulmonx is more favorable than Talkspace.

Volatility & Risk

Pulmonx has a beta of 0.07, suggesting that its share price is 93% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Talkspace has a beta of 1.2, suggesting that its share price is 20% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Talkspace beats Pulmonx on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Pulmonx

Pulmonx Corporation, a commercial-stage medical technology company, provides minimally invasive devices for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases. The company offers Zephyr Endobronchial Valve, a solution for the treatment of patients with hyperinflation associated with severe emphysema; and Chartis Pulmonary Assessment System, a balloon catheter and console system with flow and pressure sensors that are used to assess the presence of collateral ventilation. It also offers StratX Lung Analysis Platform, a cloud-based quantitative computed tomography analysis service that offers information on emphysema destruction, fissure completeness, and lobar volume to help identify target lobes for the treatment with Zephyr Valves. The company serves emphysema patients in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company was formerly known as Pulmonx and changed its name to Pulmonx Corporation in December 2013. Pulmonx Corporation was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Redwood City, California.

About Talkspace

Talkspace, Inc. operates as a virtual behavioral healthcare company in the United States. The company offers psychotherapy and psychiatry services through its platform to individuals, enterprises, and health plans and employee assistance programs. It provides text, audio, and video-based psychotherapy from licensed therapists. The company offers Talkspace Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Talkspace Behavioral Health plan (BH) that provides online therapy to members through BH and EAP offerings; and Talkspace for Business for members to access its platform services on a benefit plan paid by the enterprise. It serves its platform through third-party platforms or marketplace, such as Apple App Store and Google Play App Store. Talkspace, Inc. was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in New York, New York.