TerrAscend (OTCMKTS:TSNDF) and Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC) Head to Head Review

Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC) and TerrAscend (OTCMKTS:TSNDF) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends and profitability.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Alphatec and TerrAscend, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Alphatec	1	1	13	0	2.80
TerrAscend	0	1	0	0	2.00

Alphatec presently has a consensus target price of $17.40, indicating a potential upside of 56.62%. Given Alphatec’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Alphatec is more favorable than TerrAscend.

Profitability

This table compares Alphatec and TerrAscend’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Alphatec	-13.49%	-6,752.24%	-13.88%
TerrAscend	-31.01%	-32.93%	-5.49%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

66.3% of Alphatec shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 5.8% of TerrAscend shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.5% of Alphatec shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 31.9% of TerrAscend shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Alphatec and TerrAscend”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Alphatec	$764.16 million	2.25	-$143.36 million	($0.71)	-15.65
TerrAscend	$260.56 million	0.55	-$81.33 million	($0.11)	-4.23

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

Risk & Volatility

Alphatec has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its stock price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, TerrAscend has a beta of 1.46, indicating that its stock price is 46% more volatile than the S&P 500.

About Alphatec

Alphatec Holdings, Inc., a medical technology company, designs, develops, and advances technologies for the surgical treatment of spinal disorders in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and sells implants and instruments through third-party suppliers. The company offers Alpha InformatiX product platform, including EOS imaging system that provides full-body imaging; VEA alignment mobile application, which leverages EOS technology to more quickly quantify alignment parameters on a mobile device; SafeOp Neural InformatiX System that automates electromyographic and somatosensory evoked potential monitoring; and Valence, an intra-operative system that integrates navigation and robotics into spine procedures, as well as Sigma Prone TransPsoas (PTP) Access and PTP Patient Positioning Systems. It also provides split-blade retractors; Sigma-ALIF Access System, a procedure-specific access system; spinal implants and fixation systems comprising NanoTec surface modifications, Calibrate PSX, and Invictus, as well as various standalone implants for height restoration and stabilization. In addition, the company provides biologics comprising 3D ProFuse Osteoconductive Bioscaffold for ease of handling and better endplate-to-endplate contact; AlphaGRAFT Demineralized Bone Matrix (DBM) comprising demineralized human tissues; AlphaGRAFT DBM Fibers comprising demineralized fibers; AlphaGRAFT Cellular Bone Matrix (CBM), a growth factor-enriched cellular bone matrix; AlphaGRAFT CBM that is delivered in granular, fiber, or structural form; BioCORE Moldable Bioactive Graft, a synthetic mineral-collagen composite matrix that can be molded to fit the bone defect; and Amnioshield Amniotic Tissue Barrier, an allograft for spinal surgical barrier applications. The company sells its products through a network of independent sales agents and direct sales representatives. Alphatec Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Carlsbad, California.

About TerrAscend

TerrAscend Corp. cultivates, processes, and sells medical and adult use cannabis in Canada and the United States. The company produces and distributes hemp-derived wellness products to retail locations; and manufactures vaporizables, concentrates, topicals, tinctures and edibles. It also operates retail dispensaries under the Apothecarium and State Flower brand names. The company was incorporated in 2017 and is headquartered in Mississauga, Canada.