Reviewing Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) & Ardent Health Partners (NYSE:ARDT)

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) and Ardent Health Partners (NYSE:ARDT) are both medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Universal Health Services and Ardent Health Partners’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Universal Health Services	6.22%	14.91%	6.71%
Ardent Health Partners	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Universal Health Services and Ardent Health Partners”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Universal Health Services	$15.02 billion	1.04	$717.79 million	$11.80	19.84
Ardent Health Partners	$5.63 billion	0.49	$53.90 million	N/A	N/A

Universal Health Services has higher revenue and earnings than Ardent Health Partners.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

86.1% of Universal Health Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.1% of Universal Health Services shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Universal Health Services and Ardent Health Partners, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Universal Health Services	0	5	9	1	2.73
Ardent Health Partners	0	1	9	2	3.08

Universal Health Services presently has a consensus target price of $229.77, indicating a potential downside of 1.85%. Ardent Health Partners has a consensus target price of $21.91, indicating a potential upside of 12.35%. Given Ardent Health Partners’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Ardent Health Partners is more favorable than Universal Health Services.

Summary

Universal Health Services beats Ardent Health Partners on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Universal Health Services

Universal Health Services, Inc., through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals, and outpatient and behavioral health care facilities. It operates through Acute Care Hospital Services and Behavioral Health Care Services segments. The company's hospitals offer general and specialty surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, emergency room care, radiology, oncology, diagnostic and coronary care, pediatric services, pharmacy services, and/or behavioral health services. It also provides commercial health insurance services; and various management services, which include central purchasing, information, finance and control systems, facilities planning, physician recruitment, administrative personnel management, marketing, and public relations services. Universal Health Services, Inc. founded in 1978 and is headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

About Ardent Health Partners

Ardent Health Partners, Inc. owns and operates a network of hospitals and clinics that provides a range of healthcare services in the United States. It operates acute care hospitals, including rehabilitation hospitals and surgical hospitals. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in Brentwood, Tennessee. Ardent Health Partners, Inc. is a subsidiary of EGI-AM Investments, L.L.C.