Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) and DexCom (NASDAQ:DXCM) Head-To-Head Contrast

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) and DexCom (NASDAQ:DXCM) are both medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Pacific Biosciences of California and DexCom’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Pacific Biosciences of California	-341.47%	-326.43%	-19.40%
DexCom	17.94%	32.12%	11.86%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Pacific Biosciences of California and DexCom, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Pacific Biosciences of California	2	1	2	1	2.33
DexCom	1	3	18	2	2.88

Pacific Biosciences of California presently has a consensus price target of $2.13, indicating a potential upside of 58.58%. DexCom has a consensus price target of $86.50, indicating a potential upside of 39.02%. Given Pacific Biosciences of California’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Pacific Biosciences of California is more favorable than DexCom.

Volatility and Risk

Pacific Biosciences of California has a beta of 2.33, indicating that its share price is 133% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, DexCom has a beta of 1.55, indicating that its share price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

97.8% of DexCom shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.5% of Pacific Biosciences of California shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of DexCom shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Pacific Biosciences of California and DexCom”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Pacific Biosciences of California	$160.01 million	2.53	-$546.38 million	($1.84)	-0.73
DexCom	$4.66 billion	5.14	$836.30 million	$2.10	29.63

DexCom has higher revenue and earnings than Pacific Biosciences of California. Pacific Biosciences of California is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than DexCom, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

DexCom beats Pacific Biosciences of California on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Pacific Biosciences of California

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. designs, develops, and manufactures sequencing solution to resolve genetically complex problems. The company provides sequencing systems; consumable products, including single molecule real-time (SMRT) technology; long-red sequencing; and various reagent kits designed for specific workflow, such as preparation kit to convert DNA into SMRTbell double-stranded DNA library formats, including molecular biology reagents, such as ligase, buffers, and exonucleases. It also offers binding kits, such as modified DNA polymerase used to bind SMRTbell libraries to the polymerase in preparation for sequencing; and sequencing kits comprise reagents required for on-instrument, real-time sequencing, including the phospholinked nucleotides. In addition, it provides revio system + sequel systems which conduct, monitor, and analyze single-molecule biochemical reactions in real time; SBB short-read sequencing; onso instrument conducts, monitors, and analyzes SBB biochemical reactions; and SBB consumable, including flow cells, clustering, and sequencing reagent kits. The company serves academic and governmental research institutions; commercial testing and service laboratories; genome centers; public health labs, hospitals and clinical research institutes, and contract research organizations; pharmaceutical companies; and agricultural companies. It markets its products through a sales force and distribution partners in Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. It has a development and commercialization agreement with Invitae Corporation; and a collaboration with Radboud University Medical to explore genetic causes of rare and genetic diseases. The company was formerly known as Nanofluidics, Inc. and changed its name to Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. in 2005. Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California.

About DexCom

DexCom, Inc., a medical device company, focuses on the design, development, and commercialization of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems in the United States and internationally. The company provides its systems for use by people with diabetes, as well as for use by healthcare providers. Its products include Dexcom G6 and Dexcom G7, integrated CGM systems for diabetes management; Dexcom Share, a remote monitoring system; Dexcom Real-Time API, which enables authorized third-party software developers to integrate real-time CGM data into their digital health apps and devices; and Dexcom ONE, that is designed to replace finger stick blood glucose testing for diabetes treatment decisions. It has also submitted FDA review for Dexcom Stelo for people with type 2 diabetes. The company has a collaboration and license agreement with Verily Life Sciences LLC and Verily Ireland Limited to develop blood-based or interstitial glucose monitoring products. It markets its products directly to endocrinologists, physicians, and diabetes educators. The company was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.