Accuray (NASDAQ:ARAY – Get Free Report) and IQVIA (NYSE:IQV – Get Free Report) are both medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and valuation.
Institutional and Insider Ownership
64.1% of Accuray shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.6% of IQVIA shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.4% of Accuray shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of IQVIA shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Volatility and Risk
Accuray has a beta of 1.39, meaning that its share price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, IQVIA has a beta of 1.34, meaning that its share price is 34% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Earnings and Valuation
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Accuray | $458.51 million | 0.29 | -$1.59 million | ($0.16) | -7.31 |
| IQVIA | $15.41 billion | 2.33 | $1.37 billion | $7.29 | 28.88 |
IQVIA has higher revenue and earnings than Accuray. Accuray is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than IQVIA, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings for Accuray and IQVIA, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Accuray | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
| IQVIA | 0 | 6 | 15 | 2 | 2.83 |
Accuray currently has a consensus price target of $4.00, indicating a potential upside of 241.88%. IQVIA has a consensus price target of $239.94, indicating a potential upside of 13.99%. Given Accuray’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Accuray is more favorable than IQVIA.
Profitability
This table compares Accuray and IQVIA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Accuray | -0.35% | -4.92% | -0.58% |
| IQVIA | 8.07% | 30.70% | 6.64% |
Summary
IQVIA beats Accuray on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Accuray
Accuray Incorporated designs, develops, manufactures, and sells radiosurgery and radiation therapy systems for the treatment of tumors in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, the Middle East, India, Africa, Japan, and China. It offers the CyberKnife platform, a robotic stereotactic radiosurgery and stereotactic body radiation therapy system used for the treatment of primary and metastatic tumors outside the brain, including tumors on or near the spine and in the breast, kidney, liver, lung, pancreas, and prostate. The company also provides the TomoTherapy platform, including the Radixact System, which allows for integrated radiation treatment planning, delivery, and data management, enabling clinicians to deliver ultra-precise treatments to approximately 50 patients per day; iDMS data management system, a fully integrated treatment planning and data management systems; and Accuray precision treatment planning system, a treatment planning and data management systems. In addition, it offers post-contract customer support, installation, training, and other professional services. The company primarily markets its products directly to customers, including hospitals and stand-alone treatment facilities through its sales organization, as well as to customers through sales agents and group purchasing organizations in the United States; and to customers directly and through distributors and sales agents internationally. Accuray Incorporated was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin.
About IQVIA
IQVIA Holdings Inc. engages in the provision of advanced analytics, technology solutions, and clinical research services to the life sciences industry in the Americas, Europe, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through three segments: Technology & Analytics Solutions, Research & Development Solutions, and Contract Sales & Medical Solutions. The Technology & Analytics Solutions segment offers a range of cloud-based applications and related implementation services; real world solutions that enable life sciences and provider customers to generate and disseminate evidence, which informs health care decision making and improves patients’ outcomes; and strategic and implementation consulting services, such as advanced analytics and commercial processes outsourcing services. This segment also provides country level performance metrics related to sales of pharmaceutical products, prescribing trends, medical treatment, and promotional activity across various channels, including retail, hospital, and mail order; and measurement of sales or prescribing activity at the regional, zip code, and individual prescriber level. The Research & Development Solutions segment offers project management and clinical monitoring; clinical trial support; strategic planning and design services; and patient and site centric solutions, as well as central laboratory, genomic, bioanalytical, ADME, discovery, and vaccine and biomarker laboratory services. The Contract Sales & Medical Solutions segment provides health care provider and patient engagement services, and scientific strategy and medical affairs services. It serves pharmaceutical, biotechnology, device and diagnostic, and consumer health companies. The company has a collaboration with argenx SE. The company was formerly known as Quintiles IMS Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to IQVIA Holdings Inc. in November 2017. The company is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina.
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