Comparing Trinity Biotech (NASDAQ:TRIB) & Nephros (NASDAQ:NEPH)

Nephros (NASDAQ:NEPH) and Trinity Biotech (NASDAQ:TRIB) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Nephros and Trinity Biotech”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Nephros	$17.93 million	2.98	$70,000.00	$0.13	38.69
Trinity Biotech	$61.56 million	0.05	-$31.79 million	($14.65)	-0.06

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

Profitability

This table compares Nephros and Trinity Biotech’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Nephros	7.95%	14.89%	11.64%
Trinity Biotech	-68.48%	N/A	-32.33%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Nephros and Trinity Biotech, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Nephros	0	1	1	0	2.50
Trinity Biotech	1	1	0	0	1.50

Nephros presently has a consensus price target of $6.00, suggesting a potential upside of 19.28%. Given Nephros’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Nephros is more favorable than Trinity Biotech.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

41.1% of Nephros shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.0% of Trinity Biotech shares are held by institutional investors. 6.7% of Nephros shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.2% of Trinity Biotech 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.

Summary

Nephros beats Trinity Biotech on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Nephros

Nephros, Inc., a commercial-stage company, develops and sells water solutions to the medical and commercial markets in the United States. It offers ultrafiltration products that are used in dialysis centers for the removal of biological contaminants from water and bicarbonate concentrate; and in hospitals for the prevention of infection from waterborne pathogens, such as legionella and pseudomonas, as well as in military and outdoor recreation, commercial, and other healthcare facilities. The company also manufactures and sells water filters that enhance the taste and odor of water, as well as reduce biofilm, cysts, particulates, and scale build-up in downstream equipment. It markets its products to food service, hospitality, convenience store, and health care markets, as well as medical institutions. The company was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in South Orange, New Jersey.

About Trinity Biotech

Trinity Biotech plc acquires, together with its subsidiaries, develops, acquires, manufactures, and markets medical diagnostic products for the clinical laboratory and point-of-care (POC) segments of the diagnostic market in the Americas and Ireland. The company offers clinical laboratory products, including diagnostic tests and instrumentation, which detects infectious diseases; sexually transmitted diseases consisting of syphilis and herpes; SARS-CoV-2; and epstein barr, measles, mumps, toxoplasmosis, cytomegalovirus, rubella, varicella and other viral pathogens, as well as products for the in-vitro diagnostic testing for haemoglobin A1c used in the monitoring and diagnosis of diabetes, and identifying those who are at a risk of developing diabetes. It also provides laboratory-testing services for Sjogren's syndrome, hearing loss, celiac disease, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic sclerosis, and other laboratory-testing services for autoimmune disorders. The company develops, manufactures, and sells products in the immunofluorescence assay, enzyme-linked immunosorbent, western blot, and line immunoassay formats; and provides reagent products, such as ACE, bile acids, oxalate, and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase for diagnosis of liver and kidney diseases, as well as haemolytic anaemia. It serves public health authorities, non-governmental organisations, and clinical and reference laboratories through its direct sales force, as well as through a network of independent distributors and strategic partners. Trinity Biotech plc was incorporated in 1992 and is headquartered in Bray, Ireland.