Contrasting Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) and Allurion Technologies (NYSE:ALUR)

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) and Allurion Technologies (NYSE:ALUR) 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Baxter International and Allurion Technologies, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Baxter International	3	8	2	0	1.92
Allurion Technologies	1	1	1	0	2.00

Baxter International currently has a consensus price target of $19.73, suggesting a potential downside of 13.74%. Allurion Technologies has a consensus price target of $45.00, suggesting a potential upside of 7,658.62%. Given Allurion Technologies’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Allurion Technologies is more favorable than Baxter International.

Volatility & Risk

Baxter International has a beta of 0.62, indicating that its stock price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Allurion Technologies has a beta of -0.13, indicating that its stock price is 113% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

90.2% of Baxter International shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 21.4% of Allurion Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Baxter International shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 8.1% of Allurion Technologies shares are held by 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.

Profitability

This table compares Baxter International and Allurion Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Baxter International	-9.70%	16.15%	5.24%
Allurion Technologies	-199.96%	N/A	-77.13%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Baxter International and Allurion Technologies”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Baxter International	$11.24 billion	1.05	-$957.00 million	($2.13)	-10.74
Allurion Technologies	$17.21 million	0.51	-$7.20 million	($2.03)	-0.29

Allurion Technologies has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Baxter International. Baxter International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Allurion Technologies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Baxter International beats Allurion Technologies on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Baxter International

Baxter International Inc., through its subsidiaries, develops and provides a portfolio of healthcare products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Medical Products and Therapies, Healthcare Systems and Technologies, Pharmaceuticals, and Kidney Care. The company offers sterile intravenous (IV) solutions; infusion systems and devices; parenteral nutrition therapies; generic injectable pharmaceuticals; surgical hemostat and sealant products, advanced surgical equipment; smart bed systems; patient monitoring and diagnostic technologies; and respiratory health devices, as well as advanced equipment for the surgical space, including surgical video technologies, precision positioning devices, and other accessories. It also provides administrative sets; adhesion prevention products; inhaled anesthesia; drug compounding; chronic and acute dialysis therapies and services, including peritoneal dialysis (PD), hemodialysis (HD), continuous renal replacement therapies (CRRT), and other organ support therapies. The company’s products are used in hospitals, kidney dialysis centers, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, ambulatory surgery centers, doctors’ offices, and patients at home under physician supervision. The company sells its products through direct sales force, as well as through independent distributors, drug wholesalers, and specialty pharmacy or other alternate site providers in approximately 100 countries. It has an agreement with Celerity Pharmaceutical, LLC to develop acute care generic injectable premix and oncolytic products; and a collaborative research agreement with Miromatrix Medical Inc. aiming to advance care for patients with acute liver failure. Baxter International Inc. was incorporated in 1931 and is headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois.

About Allurion Technologies

Allurion Technologies Inc. focuses on ending obesity with a weight loss platform to treat people who are overweight. Its platform, the Allurion Program, features swallowable and procedure-less intragastric balloon for weight loss (the Allurion Balloon), as well as offers access to AI-powered remote patient monitoring tools, a proprietary behavior change program, secure messaging, and video telehealth that are delivered by the Allurion Virtual Care Suite. Allurion Technologies Inc. is headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts.