Data as of:
LIVE
INSM
Insmed Incorporated · Healthcare - Specialty Commercial/Clinical Pharma (Rare Disease)
$120.00
-8.16% this month
VERSUS
COMPARE
AZTA
Azenta, Inc. · Healthcare - Life Science Services and Equipment
$33.24
-6.68% this month
Comparison scoreboard
AZTA LEADS 3/5AI Scorei
INSM ✓67.8
AZTA 34.8
1Y Returni
INSM -17.73%
AZTA ✓+7.02%
Fwd P/Ei
INSM 157.42
AZTA ✓52.51
Target Up.i
INSM ✓+58.51%
AZTA +14.26%
Op. Margini
INSM -23.81%
AZTA ✓-2.27%
Metrics last refreshed: 9/19/2026
Quick take
INSM vs AZTA Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
INSM (Insmed) and AZTA (Azenta) are both healthcare companies serving the pharmaceutical industry in different roles — Insmed is a commercial rare disease pharma company with approved ARIKAYCE for refractory MAC lung disease and brensocatib pipeline candidate for bronchiectasis, while Azenta is a life science services company providing genomics services and sample management automation to drug development organizations.
INSM vs AZTA is rare disease commercial pharma with pipeline binary risk on brensocatib (Insmed's approved ARIKAYCE rare lung infection revenue, DPP1 inhibitor brensocatib Phase 3 bronchiectasis catalyst, and liposome delivery technology — managing aminoglycoside side effects and brensocatib data dependence) versus life science services company in strategic transition to pure-play (Azenta's sample management recurring services and genomics sequencing for pharma R&D — managing genomics commoditization and pharma R&D spending sensitivity).
Live analysis · updated 9/19/2026
AZTA holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. AZTA leads on both 1-year return (+7.02%) and forward P/E quality (52.51x vs 157.42x for INSM), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. On fundamentals, INSM is growing revenue faster (296.10%), while AZTA maintains the higher operating margin (-2.27%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for INSM (+58.51%) than for AZTA (+14.26%).
Normalized 1Y performance
INSM
AZTA
Recent returns
INSM
AZTA
Analyst price targets & sentiment
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
INSM
Price target range
analyst mean$200.18
current price$120.00
+58.5% upside to analyst mean
AZTA
Price target range
analyst mean$35.25
current price$33.24
+14.3% upside to analyst mean
Who should consider this stock?
INSM may suit investors who:
- Want commercial rare disease pharma exposure through the only FDA-approved MAC lung disease treatment with orphan drug exclusivity and first-mover advantage
- Believe brensocatib's DPP1 inhibition for bronchiectasis addresses a chronic neutrophilic inflammatory lung disease with a much larger patient population than MAC lung disease
- Accept clinical-stage binary risk on brensocatib Phase 3 ASPEN data in exchange for the potential to build a major rare respiratory disease franchise beyond ARIKAYCE
AZTA may suit investors who:
- Want recurring life science services exposure through mission-critical sample management and genomics services to pharmaceutical and biotech drug development customers with high switching costs
- Value Azenta's strategic transformation to pure-play life sciences after divesting semiconductor automation for clearer sector-focused positioning
- See sample management as a high-switching-cost recurring service providing stable revenue as pharma companies store irreplaceable research samples in Azenta's cryogenic biorepositories
Performance & AI score
| Metric | INSM | AZTA |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 67.8 | 34.8 |
| AI ranki | #60 | #1781 |
| Latest closei | $120.00 | $33.24 |
| 1M returni | -8.16% | -6.68% |
| 6M returni | -16.67% | +64.64% |
| 1Y returni | -17.73% | +7.02% |
$10,000 invested — hypothetical growth (dividends reinvested)
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | INSM | AZTA |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $8.23K (-17.7%) started 2025-09-18 | $10.7K (+7.0%) started 2025-09-18 |
| 5Y ago | $46.14K (+361.4%) started 2021-09-20 | $3.25K (-67.5%) started 2021-09-20 |
| 10Y ago | $82.47K (+724.7%) started 2016-09-19 | $28.87K (+188.7%) started 2016-09-19 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
Valuation & upside potential
| Metric | INSM | AZTA |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $27.58B | $1.35B |
| Trailing P/Ei | N/A | N/A |
| Forward P/Ei | 157.42 | 52.51 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 23.87 | 1.76 |
| Analyst targeti | $200.18 | $35.25 |
| Target upsidei | +58.51% | +14.26% |
Growth, profitability & risk
| Metric | INSM | AZTA |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 296.10% | 12.00% |
| Earnings growthi | N/A | N/A |
| EPS growthi | N/A | N/A |
| FCF margini | -50.26% | +10.32% |
| Operating margini | -23.81% | -2.27% |
| Profit margini | -76.94% | -20.02% |
| ROIC proxyi | -87.22% | -7.04% |
| Return on equityi | -87.22% | -7.04% |
| Dividend yieldi | N/A | N/A |
| Payout ratioi | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Dividend growth streaki | N/A | No increase yet |
| Betai | 0.82 | 1.39 |
| Debt/equityi | 97.65 | 3.57 |
| Current ratioi | 3.72 | 2.50 |
| Quick ratioi | 3.13 | 1.85 |
Correlation
Over the past year, INSM and AZTA have moved barely in the same direction (correlation of 0.01), based on daily returns.
1Y
0.01
-1.0+1.0
5Y
0.13
-1.0+1.0
10Y
0.18
-1.0+1.0
Drawdown & downside risk
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
1Y risk snapshot
INSM max drawdowni56.54%
AZTA max drawdowni60.94%
INSM max wkly dropi25.80%
AZTA max wkly dropi28.77%
5Y risk snapshot
INSM max drawdowni56.54%
AZTA max drawdowni87.08%
INSM max wkly dropi25.80%
AZTA max wkly dropi28.77%
10Y risk snapshot
INSM max drawdowni64.84%
AZTA max drawdowni87.08%
INSM max wkly dropi34.18%
AZTA max wkly dropi28.77%
Performance metrics by period
| Period | Metric | INSM | AZTA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | -17.73% | +7.02% |
| CAGRi | -17.74% | +7.02% | |
| Volatilityi | 62.37% | 61.23% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.08 | 0.36 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.13 | 0.47 | |
| Max drawdowni | 56.54% | 60.94% | |
| Current drawdowni | 43.24% | 18.95% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 28.18% | 24.92% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 33.45% | 30.72% | |
| Max daily dropi | 23.41% | 25.31% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 25.80% | 28.77% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +361.36% | -67.53% |
| CAGRi | +35.82% | -20.17% | |
| Volatilityi | 74.22% | 52.37% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.64 | -0.25 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.42 | -0.34 | |
| Max drawdowni | 56.54% | 87.08% | |
| Current drawdowni | 43.24% | 73.20% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 23.34% | 58.43% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 28.24% | 61.21% | |
| Max daily dropi | 23.41% | 25.31% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 25.80% | 28.77% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +724.74% | +171.68% |
| CAGRi | +23.50% | +10.52% | |
| Volatilityi | 79.05% | 51.90% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.52 | 0.37 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.09 | 0.53 | |
| Max drawdowni | 64.84% | 87.08% | |
| Current drawdowni | 43.24% | 73.20% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 27.73% | 35.58% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 33.53% | 44.75% | |
| Max daily dropi | 24.07% | 25.31% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 34.18% | 28.77% |
Business comparison
| Category | INSM | AZTA |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Insmed Incorporated | Azenta, Inc. |
| Sector | Healthcare | Healthcare |
| Industry | Biotechnology | Medical Instruments & Supplies |
| Core business | Insmed is a global specialty pharmaceutical company with ARIKAYCE (amikacin liposome inhalation suspension) — the first and only FDA-approved treatment for refractory Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) lung disease in adults who have limited or no treatment alternatives. MAC lung disease is a serious, progressive rare lung infection caused by nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) — an environmental bacteria that grows inside alveolar macrophages; ARIKAYCE's unique liposome delivery system concentrates amikacin directly at the site of MAC infection. Beyond ARIKAYCE, Insmed's most advanced pipeline candidate is brensocatib — a dipeptidyl peptidase 1 (DPP1) inhibitor for bronchiectasis and other neutrophilic inflammatory diseases. | Azenta Inc. (formerly Brooks Automation's Life Sciences division) is a life science services and equipment company providing solutions to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and academic research organizations. Azenta's primary businesses include: Genomics and OMICS Services (whole genome sequencing, RNA-seq, single-cell genomics, proteomics, and bioinformatics); Sample Management (automated biorepository storage systems, sample management software, and cryogenic storage services from -80°C to -196°C); and Life Science Products (consumables and equipment for sample workflow automation). Azenta completed a strategic transformation by selling its semiconductor automation business to focus entirely on life sciences. |
| Investor focus | Investors track ARIKAYCE net revenue growth and global launch execution, brensocatib's Phase 3 clinical data and regulatory pathway (particularly ASPEN Phase 3 for bronchiectasis), and overall cash position management. | Investors track Azenta's revenue growth and margin trajectory in genomics services and sample management businesses, the transition from semiconductor equipment to pure-play life science services, and operating leverage as the company scales. |
INSM strengths
- ARIKAYCE has first-mover advantage and orphan drug designation in refractory MAC lung disease with no other approved therapies — no other FDA-approved drug specifically targeted MAC lung disease before ARIKAYCE; orphan drug designation provides 7 years of market exclusivity
- Brensocatib represents a potential blockbuster opportunity in bronchiectasis — WILLOW Phase 2 data showed significantly reduced exacerbations; Phase 3 ASPEN results are a major near-term catalyst; bronchiectasis is 3x more prevalent than MAC lung disease
- Liposome delivery technology provides genuine pharmacological differentiation — ARIKAYCE's lipid nanoparticle formulation targets alveolar macrophages where MAC hides; concentrated drug delivery to the site of infection is superior to systemic drug exposure
AZTA strengths
- Sample management is a recurring, mission-critical service for pharma drug development — pharmaceutical companies store invaluable research samples in long-term cryogenic repositories; losing samples can set drug programs back years; Azenta's sample management services have high switching costs
- Genomics services benefit from continued growth in genomics-driven drug discovery — sequencing costs continue declining while demand for genomics data in drug discovery increases; Azenta serves pharma and biotech R&D with customized genomics analysis
- Strategic transformation to pure-play life sciences improves focus and valuation clarity — after divesting semiconductor automation, Azenta's clearer positioning attracts life science-focused investors
Risks to watch — INSM
- Brensocatib Phase 3 ASPEN data is a binary event — brensocatib represents a substantial portion of Insmed's market cap; negative or ambiguous data would significantly reduce value
- ARIKAYCE commercial execution in a rare disease market requires intensive patient identification — MAC lung disease affects approximately 100,000 U.S. patients; identifying and treating refractory patients requires significant investment
- Aminoglycoside toxicity (hearing loss, kidney damage) is a class risk that limits ARIKAYCE's prescribing and requires monitoring
Risks to watch — AZTA
- Genomics services is a commoditizing market with declining sequencing prices — many large pharma companies can sequence internally; academic genome centers compete for services contracts; margin pressure from price erosion is persistent
- Sample management growth may face slower-than-expected pharma R&D spending cycles — if pharma companies freeze R&D budgets, sample management expansion slows
- Company is in strategic transition — investors may be uncertain about the long-term growth trajectory in pure-play life science services vs. the divested semiconductor automation business
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