Liquidia Corporation's Financial Efficiency in the Biopharmaceutical Industry

Font: Financial Modeling Prep  • Aug 23, 2025

Liquidia Corporation (NASDAQ:LQDA) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension and other related conditions. The company's primary product, YUTREPIA, is an inhaled dry powder formulation of treprostinil. Liquidia operates in a competitive landscape alongside companies like Kezar Life Sciences, Verrica Pharmaceuticals, Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, and Scholar Rock Holding Corporation.

In evaluating Liquidia's financial efficiency, the company's Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) is -61.83%, which is significantly lower than its Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) of 5.01%. This negative ROIC indicates that Liquidia is not generating enough returns to cover its cost of capital, which is a critical measure of financial health and operational efficiency.

When comparing Liquidia to its peers, Kezar Life Sciences has an even lower ROIC of -72.92% against a WACC of 6.98%, resulting in a ROIC to WACC ratio of -10.44. This suggests that Kezar is also struggling to generate returns that meet its cost of capital, similar to Liquidia. However, Kezar's ratio is slightly better than Liquidia's -12.35, indicating a marginally less inefficient performance.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals presents a more challenging scenario with a ROIC of -166.93% and a WACC of 17.57%, leading to a ROIC to WACC ratio of -9.50. Despite having a higher WACC, Verrica's negative ROIC is the most severe among the peers, highlighting significant inefficiencies in generating returns on its invested capital.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, with a ROIC of -34.46% and a WACC of 5.30%, achieves the highest ROIC to WACC ratio of -6.51 among the peers. Although still negative, this ratio suggests that Crinetics is closer to achieving a balance between its returns and cost of capital compared to the other companies in the analysis.