Comparing Elekta (OTCMKTS:EKTAY) & Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI)

Elekta (OTCMKTS:EKTAY) and Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) are both mid-cap healthcare companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability and earnings.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Elekta and Merit Medical Systems, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Elekta	1	1	0	0	1.50
Merit Medical Systems	0	3	8	1	2.83

Merit Medical Systems has a consensus target price of $100.00, suggesting a potential upside of 9.68%. Given Merit Medical Systems’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Merit Medical Systems is more favorable than Elekta.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

99.7% of Merit Medical Systems shares are held by institutional investors. 41.3% of Elekta shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of Merit Medical Systems shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Elekta and Merit Medical Systems”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Elekta	$1.78 billion	1.13	-$55.38 million	($0.12)	-45.67
Merit Medical Systems	$1.52 billion	3.59	$128.49 million	$2.42	37.68

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

Volatility & Risk

Elekta has a beta of 1.05, indicating that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Merit Medical Systems has a beta of 0.49, indicating that its share price is 51% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Elekta and Merit Medical Systems’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Elekta	-2.38%	13.31%	3.80%
Merit Medical Systems	9.22%	13.75%	8.10%

Summary

Merit Medical Systems beats Elekta on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Elekta

Elekta AB (publ), a medical technology company, provides clinical solutions for treating cancer and brain disorders worldwide. The company offers Versa HD, a brain metastases solution; Elekta Unity for real-time MR visualization; Elekta Harmony, a linear accelerator; Elekta Infinity for treating a range of patients with simple-to-complex radiotherapy needs; Elekta Synergy, a digital accelerator for image guided radiation therapy; treatment and workflow management solutions; radiation and medical oncology; and other patient services. It also provides Elekta Studio, an image guided brachytherapy solution; ImagingRing, a mobile CT scanner; Oncentra Brachy, a smart tool that facilitate repetitive tasks; Venezia applicator that enables the oncologist to treat locally advanced cervical cancer; Elekta Flexitron afterloader for enabling the precise execution of all steps in the workflow; Geneva, an applicator for cervical cancer treatment; veterinary radiation therapy products; and Elekta Kaiku for personalized cancer care. In addition, the company offers stereotactic radiosurgery, such as Leksell Gamma Knife Icon for personalized radiation treatment; Leksell Gamma Knife Perfexion, a tool for radiosurgeons; and Elekta Esprit. Further, it provides neurosurgery products comprising Leksell Vantage Stereotactic System for intracranial neurosurgery; and Leksell Stereotactic System for minimally invasive stereotactic neurosurgery. The company was incorporated in 1972 and is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden.

About Merit Medical Systems

Merit Medical Systems, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and markets single-use medical products for interventional, diagnostic, and therapeutic procedures in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Cardiovascular and Endoscopy. The company provides micropuncture kits, angiographic needles, sheaths, guide wires, and safety products; peripheral intervention, including angiography, drainage, delivery systems, and embolotherapy products; spine products, such as vertebral augmentation, radiofrequency ablation, and bone biopsy systems; oncology products; and cardiac intervention products, such as access, angiography, electrophysiology and cardiac rhythm management, fluid management, hemodynamic monitoring, hemostasis, and intervention to treat various heart conditions. It also offers custom procedural solutions that include critical care products, disinfection protection systems, syringes, manifold kits, and trays and packs; coating services for medical tubes and wires; and sensor components for microelectromechanical systems. In addition, the company provides pulmonary products that consist of laser-cut tracheobronchial stents, over-the-wire and direct visualization delivery systems, and dilation balloons to endoscopically dilate structures; gastroenterology products, such as covered esophageal stents, syringe and gauges, and balloon dilators; and kits and accessories for endoscopy and bronchoscopy procedures. It sells its products to hospitals and alternate site-based physicians, technicians, and nurses through direct sales force, distributors, original equipment manufacturer partners, or custom procedure tray manufacturers. The company was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in South Jordan, Utah.