QuidelOrtho (QDEL) Competitors

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ:MMSI) and QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) are both medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, dividends and media sentiment.

Which has more volatility & risk, MMSI or QDEL?

Merit Medical Systems has a beta of 0.58, suggesting that its stock price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, QuidelOrtho has a beta of 0.27, suggesting that its stock price is 73% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media refer more to MMSI or QDEL?

In the previous week, QuidelOrtho had 1 more articles in the media than Merit Medical Systems. MarketBeat recorded 16 mentions for QuidelOrtho and 15 mentions for Merit Medical Systems. Merit Medical Systems' average media sentiment score of 0.97 beat QuidelOrtho's score of 0.04 indicating that Merit Medical Systems is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Merit Medical Systems	8 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	5 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
QuidelOrtho	2 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Which has better earnings and valuation, MMSI or QDEL?

Merit Medical Systems has higher earnings, but lower revenue than QuidelOrtho. QuidelOrtho 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.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Merit Medical Systems	$1.36B	3.51	$120.36M	$1.97	40.85
QuidelOrtho	$2.78B	0.67	-$2.05B	-$6.54	-4.18

Do analysts rate MMSI or QDEL?

Merit Medical Systems presently has a consensus price target of $107.50, indicating a potential upside of 33.59%. QuidelOrtho has a consensus price target of $37.80, indicating a potential upside of 38.41%. Given QuidelOrtho's higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe QuidelOrtho is more favorable than Merit Medical Systems.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Merit Medical Systems	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	8 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.89
QuidelOrtho	3 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	1.88

Is MMSI or QDEL more profitable?

Merit Medical Systems has a net margin of 8.31% compared to QuidelOrtho's net margin of -16.10%. Merit Medical Systems' return on equity of 15.07% beat QuidelOrtho's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Merit Medical Systems	8.31%	15.07%	8.60%
QuidelOrtho	-16.10%	5.29%	2.43%

Do insiders & institutionals believe in MMSI or QDEL?

99.7% of Merit Medical Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 99.0% of QuidelOrtho shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.2% of Merit Medical Systems shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of QuidelOrtho shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Merit Medical Systems beats QuidelOrtho on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.