Head to Head Comparison: GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) versus Pediatrix Medical Group (NYSE:MD)

GeneDx (NASDAQ:WGS) and Pediatrix Medical Group (NYSE:MD) are both medical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, valuation, risk and earnings.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

61.7% of GeneDx shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.7% of Pediatrix Medical Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 29.6% of GeneDx shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Pediatrix Medical Group shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares GeneDx and Pediatrix Medical Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
GeneDx	0.52%	20.22%	11.89%
Pediatrix Medical Group	8.44%	20.45%	7.94%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares GeneDx and Pediatrix Medical Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
GeneDx	$305.45 million	8.53	-$52.29 million	$0.09	1,001.67
Pediatrix Medical Group	$2.01 billion	0.92	-$99.07 million	$1.90	11.31

GeneDx has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Pediatrix Medical Group. Pediatrix Medical Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than GeneDx, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for GeneDx and Pediatrix Medical Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
GeneDx	1	2	7	0	2.60
Pediatrix Medical Group	0	5	1	0	2.17

GeneDx presently has a consensus price target of $138.13, indicating a potential upside of 53.22%. Pediatrix Medical Group has a consensus price target of $21.00, indicating a potential downside of 2.23%. Given GeneDx’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe GeneDx is more favorable than Pediatrix Medical Group.

Volatility and Risk

GeneDx has a beta of 2, indicating that its stock price is 100% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pediatrix Medical Group has a beta of 0.76, indicating that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

GeneDx beats Pediatrix Medical Group on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About GeneDx

GeneDx Holdings Corp., through its subsidiaries, provides genomics-related diagnostic and information services. The company offers Centrellis, an AI-driven health intelligence platform that integrates digital tools and artificial intelligence allowing scientists to ingest and synthesize clinical and genomic data to deliver comprehensive health insights. It provides genetic diagnostic tests, screening solutions, and information with a focus on pediatrics, rare diseases for children and adults, and hereditary cancer screening. GeneDx Holdings Corp. was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.

About Pediatrix Medical Group

Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides newborn, maternal-fetal, pediatric cardiology, and other pediatric subspecialty care services in the United States. It offers neonatal care services, such as clinical care to babies born prematurely or with complications within specific units at hospitals through neonatal physician subspecialists, neonatal nurse practitioners, and other pediatric clinicians. The company also provides maternal-fetal care services, including inpatient and office-based clinical care to expectant mothers and unborn babies through affiliated maternal-fetal medicine subspecialists, as well as obstetricians and other clinicians, including maternal-fetal nurse practitioners, certified nurse mid-wives, sonographers, and genetic counselors. In addition, it offers pediatric cardiology care services comprising inpatient and office-based pediatric cardiology care of the fetus, infant, child, and adolescent patient with congenital heart defects and acquired heart disease, as well as adults with congenital heart defects through affiliated pediatric cardiologist subspecialists and other related clinical professionals, including pediatric nurse practitioners, echocardiographers, other diagnostic technicians, and exercise physiologists; and specialized cardiac care to the fetus, neonatal and pediatric patients. Further, the company provides other pediatric subspecialty care services, such as pediatric intensivists, pediatric hospitalists, pediatric surgeons, and pediatric ophthalmologists, as well as pediatric ear, nose, and throat physicians, pediatric gastroenterologists; and support services in the areas of hospitals, primarily in the pediatric emergency rooms, labor and delivery areas, and nursery and pediatric departments. The company was formerly known as MEDNAX, Inc. and changed its name to Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc. in July 2022. Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is based in Sunrise, Florida.