GSK (GSK) Competitors

AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) and GSK (LON:GSK) are both large-cap medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, media sentiment, institutional ownership and profitability.

Is AZN or GSK more profitable?

AstraZeneca has a net margin of 13.01% compared to GSK's net margin of 8.02%. GSK's return on equity of 18.08% beat AstraZeneca's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AstraZeneca	13.01%	17.76%	7.68%
GSK	8.02%	18.08%	9.56%

Do insiders and institutionals have more ownership in AZN or GSK?

67.8% of AstraZeneca shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.9% of GSK shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of AstraZeneca shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of GSK shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Which has stronger valuation & earnings, AZN or GSK?

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

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AstraZeneca	£56.50B	3.13	£8.71B	£5.31	2,149.53
GSK	£31.63B	1.88	£2.50B	£0.83	1,788.39

Does the media refer more to AZN or GSK?

In the previous week, GSK had 11 more articles in the media than AstraZeneca. MarketBeat recorded 15 mentions for GSK and 4 mentions for AstraZeneca. AstraZeneca's average media sentiment score of 0.71 beat GSK's score of 0.63 indicating that AstraZeneca is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
AstraZeneca	1 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
GSK	4 Very Positive mention(s)	6 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts prefer AZN or GSK?

AstraZeneca currently has a consensus price target of £131.75, indicating a potential upside of 15.43%. GSK has a consensus price target of GBX 1,637.50, indicating a potential upside of 10.72%. Given AstraZeneca's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe AstraZeneca is more favorable than GSK.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AstraZeneca	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.75
GSK	1 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Is AZN or GSK a better dividend stock?

AstraZeneca pays an annual dividend of GBX 3.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.0%. GSK pays an annual dividend of GBX 0.62 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.0%. AstraZeneca pays out 59.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. GSK pays out 75.0% 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.

Which has more volatility & risk, AZN or GSK?

AstraZeneca has a beta of 0.17, indicating that its stock price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, GSK has a beta of 0.31, indicating that its stock price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

AstraZeneca beats GSK on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.