Reviewing Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) & CVRx (NASDAQ:CVRX)

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) and CVRx (NASDAQ:CVRX) are both medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, risk and dividends.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Baxter International and CVRx”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Baxter International	$15.00 billion	1.30	$2.66 billion	$5.20	7.37
CVRx	$44.39 million	4.34	-$41.20 million	($2.47)	-3.62

Baxter International has higher revenue and earnings than CVRx. CVRx is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Baxter International, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Baxter International and CVRx, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Baxter International	1	8	2	0	2.09
CVRx	0	2	5	0	2.71

Baxter International currently has a consensus price target of $41.73, suggesting a potential upside of 8.83%. CVRx has a consensus price target of $13.67, suggesting a potential upside of 53.04%. Given CVRx’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe CVRx is more favorable than Baxter International.

Volatility and Risk

Baxter International has a beta of 0.59, suggesting that its stock price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CVRx has a beta of 1.27, suggesting that its stock price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Baxter International and CVRx’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Baxter International	16.51%	18.06%	5.21%
CVRx	-122.52%	-77.62%	-51.34%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

90.2% of Baxter International shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.3% of CVRx shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Baxter International shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 18.9% of CVRx shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Baxter International beats CVRx on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Baxter International

Baxter International Inc., through its subsidiaries, develops and provides a portfolio of healthcare products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Medical Products and Therapies, Healthcare Systems and Technologies, Pharmaceuticals, and Kidney Care. The company offers sterile intravenous (IV) solutions; infusion systems and devices; parenteral nutrition therapies; generic injectable pharmaceuticals; surgical hemostat and sealant products, advanced surgical equipment; smart bed systems; patient monitoring and diagnostic technologies; and respiratory health devices, as well as advanced equipment for the surgical space, including surgical video technologies, precision positioning devices, and other accessories. It also provides administrative sets; adhesion prevention products; inhaled anesthesia; drug compounding; chronic and acute dialysis therapies and services, including peritoneal dialysis (PD), hemodialysis (HD), continuous renal replacement therapies (CRRT), and other organ support therapies. The company’s products are used in hospitals, kidney dialysis centers, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, ambulatory surgery centers, doctors’ offices, and patients at home under physician supervision. The company sells its products through direct sales force, as well as through independent distributors, drug wholesalers, and specialty pharmacy or other alternate site providers in approximately 100 countries. It has an agreement with Celerity Pharmaceutical, LLC to develop acute care generic injectable premix and oncolytic products; and a collaborative research agreement with Miromatrix Medical Inc. aiming to advance care for patients with acute liver failure. Baxter International Inc. was incorporated in 1931 and is headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois.

About CVRx

CVRx, Inc., a commercial-stage medical device company, focuses on developing, manufacturing, and commercializing neuromodulation solutions for patients with cardiovascular diseases. The company offers Barostim, a neuromodulation device indicated to improve symptoms for patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction or systolic heart failure. It sells its products through direct sales force, as well as sales agents and independent distributors in the United States, Germany, and internationally. The company was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.