Pain Therapeutics Inc. Stock Downgraded (PTIE)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Pain Therapeutics (Nasdaq:PTIE) has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to sell. Among the areas we feel are negative, one of the most important has been a generally disappointing historical performance in the stock itself.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• PTIE has underperformed the S&P 500 Index, declining 23.56% from its price level of one year ago. The fact that the stock is now selling for less than others in its industry in relation to its current earnings is not reason enough to justify a buy rating at this time.
• The company's current return on equity greatly increased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of significant strength within the corporation. Compared to other companies in the Pharmaceuticals industry and the overall market, PAIN THERAPEUTICS INC's return on equity significantly trails that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
• PTIE, with its decline in revenue, slightly underperformed the industry average of 2.5%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly dropped by 1.0%. The declining revenue has not hurt the company's bottom line, with increasing earnings per share.
• PAIN THERAPEUTICS INC reported significant earnings per share improvement in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past two years. However, we anticipate underperformance relative to this pattern in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, PAIN THERAPEUTICS INC continued to lose money by earning -$0.06 versus -$0.27 in the prior year. This year, the market expects earnings to be in line with last year (-$0.06 versus -$0.06).
• The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has significantly exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the Pharmaceuticals industry. The net income increased by 89.1% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, rising from -$1.20 million to -$0.13 million.

Pain Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of novel drugs. Its lead drug candidate is REMOXY painkiller, a novel controlled-release oral capsule form of oxycodone in a viscous liquid formulation matrix that includes novel excipients. Pain has a market cap of $162.4 million and is part of the health care sector and drugs industry. Shares are down 4.5% year to date as of the close of trading on Friday.

You can view the full Pain Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

-- Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff

TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

For more information on Pain Therapeutics Inc. click any of the following:

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Stock Price

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Analyst Ratings

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Key Stats & Profile

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Earnings

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Ratio Comparison

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Growth Rates

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Balance Sheet

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Cash Flow

• Pain Therapeutics Inc. Income Statement