Financial Analysis: Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) vs. Bioqual (OTCMKTS:BIOQ)

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) and Bioqual (OTCMKTS:BIOQ) are both medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Encompass Health and Bioqual’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Encompass Health	9.22%	17.83%	7.68%
Bioqual	-1.32%	-1.74%	-1.09%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Encompass Health and Bioqual, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Encompass Health	0	0	8	2	3.20
Bioqual	0	0	0	0	0.00

Encompass Health currently has a consensus price target of $139.86, suggesting a potential upside of 10.80%. Given Encompass Health’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Encompass Health is more favorable than Bioqual.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Encompass Health and Bioqual”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Encompass Health	$5.37 billion	2.37	$455.70 million	$5.11	24.70
Bioqual	$48.87 million	0.73	-$1.05 million	($0.70)	-57.14

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

Risk and Volatility

Encompass Health has a beta of 0.93, suggesting that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bioqual has a beta of -0.07, suggesting that its share price is 107% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Encompass Health pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. Bioqual pays an annual dividend of $0.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Encompass Health pays out 14.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Bioqual pays out -71.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Encompass Health has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Bioqual is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

97.3% of Encompass Health shares are held by institutional investors. 2.0% of Encompass Health shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 39.2% of Bioqual shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Encompass Health beats Bioqual on 15 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Encompass Health

Encompass Health Corporation provides post-acute healthcare services in the United States and Puerto Rico. It owns and operates inpatient rehabilitation hospitals that provide medical, nursing, therapy, and ancillary services. The company provides specialized rehabilitative treatment on an inpatient basis to patients who have experienced physical or cognitive disabilities or injuries due to medical conditions, such as strokes, hip fractures, and various debilitating neurological conditions. It offers services through the Medicare program to federal government, managed care plans and private insurers, state governments, and other patients. The company was formerly known as HealthSouth Corporation and changed its name to Encompass Health Corporation in January 2018. The company was incorporated in 1984 and is based in Birmingham, Alabama.

About Bioqual

Bioqual, Inc. provides in-vivo and in-vitro pre-clinical research services to commercial and government clients in the United States. The company provides research services in the areas of COVID-19, AIDS, influenza, RSV infection, and flavivirus infections, including zika, dengue, malaria, hepatitis, and cancer. Its services also include sample processing, virus stock generation, quantitation of infectious virus, virus neutralization assays, hemagglutination inhibition assay, quantitative PCR, antigen and antibody ELISA detection assays, flow cytometry, lymphocyte proliferation, and other cell-based assays. In addition, the company provides animal research model related services. Bioqual, Inc. was founded in 1981 and is based in Rockville, Maryland.