Reviewing Smith & Nephew SNATS (NYSE:SNN) & Evolus (NASDAQ:EOLS)

Evolus (NASDAQ:EOLS) and Smith & Nephew SNATS (NYSE:SNN) are both medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, dividends and valuation.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

90.7% of Evolus shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.6% of Smith & Nephew SNATS shares are held by institutional investors. 5.0% of Evolus shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of Smith & Nephew SNATS shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Evolus has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Smith & Nephew SNATS has a beta of 0.57, suggesting that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Evolus and Smith & Nephew SNATS, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Evolus	1	1	4	0	2.50
Smith & Nephew SNATS	0	4	1	1	2.50

Evolus presently has a consensus price target of $16.00, indicating a potential upside of 143.53%. Smith & Nephew SNATS has a consensus price target of $30.93, indicating a potential upside of 3.89%. Given Evolus’ higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Evolus is more favorable than Smith & Nephew SNATS.

Profitability

This table compares Evolus and Smith & Nephew SNATS’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Evolus	-14.39%	N/A	-19.03%
Smith & Nephew SNATS	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Evolus and Smith & Nephew SNATS”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Evolus	$297.18 million	1.46	-$51.64 million	($0.67)	-9.81
Smith & Nephew SNATS	$6.16 billion	2.06	$625.00 million	N/A	N/A

Smith & Nephew SNATS has higher revenue and earnings than Evolus.

Summary

Smith & Nephew SNATS beats Evolus on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Evolus

Evolus, Inc., a performance beauty company, focuses on delivering products in the cash-pay aesthetic market in the United States, Canada, and Europe. The company offers Jeuveau, a proprietary 900 kilodalton purified botulinum toxin type A formulation for the temporary improvement in the appearance of moderate to severe glabellar lines in adults. It also provides dermal filler products under the Estyme and Evolysse names. The company was incorporated in 2012 and is headquartered in Newport Beach, California.

About Smith & Nephew SNATS

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT. The Advanced Wound Management segment includes advanced wound care, advanced wound bioactives, and advanced wound devices businesses. The company was founded in 1856 and is headquartered in Watford, the United Kingdom.