Sonida Senior Living (NYSE:SNDA) vs. Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Critical Review

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) and Sonida Senior Living (NYSE:SNDA) are both healthcare companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, valuation, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Universal Health Services and Sonida Senior Living’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Universal Health Services	7.96%	18.39%	8.61%
Sonida Senior Living	-23.27%	-25.53%	-6.67%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Universal Health Services and Sonida Senior Living”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Universal Health Services	$17.36 billion	0.60	$1.49 billion	$23.91	7.35
Sonida Senior Living	$525.97 million	3.13	-$70.78 million	($6.19)	-5.54

Universal Health Services has higher revenue and earnings than Sonida Senior Living. Sonida Senior Living is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Universal Health Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

86.0% of Universal Health Services shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.6% of Sonida Senior Living shares are held by institutional investors. 17.1% of Universal Health Services shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 39.3% of Sonida Senior Living shares are held by 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.

Volatility and Risk

Universal Health Services has a beta of 1.03, meaning that its share price is 3% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sonida Senior Living has a beta of 0.74, meaning that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Universal Health Services and Sonida Senior Living, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Universal Health Services	0	12	6	0	2.33
Sonida Senior Living	2	1	6	0	2.44

Universal Health Services presently has a consensus target price of $205.06, indicating a potential upside of 16.69%. Sonida Senior Living has a consensus target price of $49.50, indicating a potential upside of 44.46%. Given Sonida Senior Living’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Sonida Senior Living is more favorable than Universal Health Services.

Summary

Universal Health Services beats Sonida Senior Living on 8 of the 13 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 Sonida Senior Living

Sonida Senior Living, Inc. develops, owns, operates, and manages senior housing communities in the United States. The company provides independent living services, which include daily meals, transportation, social and recreational activities, laundry, housekeeping, and 24-hour staffing; and access to health screenings, periodic special services, and dietary and similar programs, as well as exercise and fitness classes. It also offers assisted living services consist of personal care services, such as assistance with activities of daily living, including ambulation, bathing, dressing, eating, grooming, personal hygiene, and monitoring or assistance with medications; support services, such as meals, assistance with social and recreational activities, laundry, general housekeeping, maintenance, and transportation services; and supplemental services, which include extra transportation, personal maintenance, and extra laundry services, as well as special care services for residents with various forms of dementia. In addition, the company provides memory care services; and home care services through third-party providers. As of December 31, 2021, it operated 75 senior housing communities in 18 states with an aggregate capacity of approximately 9,500 residents, including 60 senior housing communities. The company was formerly known as Capital Senior Living Corporation and changed its name to Sonida Senior Living, Inc. in November 2021. Sonida Senior Living, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is based in Addison, Texas.