Financial Analysis: LivaNova (NASDAQ:LIVN) vs. Fresenius SE & Co. (OTCMKTS:FSNUY)

Fresenius SE & Co. (OTCMKTS:FSNUY) and LivaNova (NASDAQ:LIVN) are both healthcare companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

97.6% of LivaNova shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of LivaNova shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Fresenius SE & Co. and LivaNova’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Fresenius SE & Co.	6.58%	10.24%	4.94%
LivaNova	13.01%	16.10%	7.85%

Volatility & Risk

Fresenius SE & Co. has a beta of 0.63, meaning that its share price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, LivaNova has a beta of 0.91, meaning that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Fresenius SE & Co. and LivaNova, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Fresenius SE & Co.	0	0	3	0	3.00
LivaNova	0	3	9	0	2.75

LivaNova has a consensus price target of $101.22, suggesting a potential upside of 10.84%. Given LivaNova’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe LivaNova is more favorable than Fresenius SE & Co..

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Fresenius SE & Co. and LivaNova”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Fresenius SE & Co.	$25.87 billion	1.29	$1.43 billion	$0.80	18.50
LivaNova	$1.39 billion	3.62	-$242.47 million	$3.00	30.44

Fresenius SE & Co. has higher revenue and earnings than LivaNova. Fresenius SE & Co. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than LivaNova, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

LivaNova beats Fresenius SE & Co. on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Fresenius SE & Co.

Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA is a German healthcare group headquartered in Bad Homburg. Its businesses include Fresenius Kabi, which supplies medicines, clinical nutrition, infusion therapies and medical technologies, and Fresenius Helios, which operates hospitals in Germany and Spain. Fresenius Kabi serves healthcare providers around the world, while Helios focuses on hospital and healthcare services in Europe. The group traces its origins to a pharmacy in Frankfurt acquired by pharmacist Eduard Fresenius in 1912.

About LivaNova

LivaNova plc is a global medical technology company that develops and manufactures products for cardiovascular care and neuromodulation. The company was formed in 2015 through the combination of Cyberonics and Sorin Group. In neuromodulation, LivaNova’s VNS Therapy system delivers vagus nerve stimulation and is used as an adjunctive treatment for certain people with drug-resistant epilepsy and treatment-resistant depression. Its cardiovascular products support cardiac surgery and include heart-lung machines, oxygenators and related perfusion equipment.