Contrasting The Pennant Group (NASDAQ:PNTG) & AMN Healthcare Services (NYSE:AMN)

AMN Healthcare Services (NYSE:AMN) and The Pennant Group (NASDAQ:PNTG) are both small-cap healthcare companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares AMN Healthcare Services and The Pennant Group”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AMN Healthcare Services	$2.73 billion	0.49	-$95.70 million	$2.68	12.90
The Pennant Group	$947.71 million	1.50	$29.58 million	$0.90	45.30

The Pennant Group has lower revenue, but higher earnings than AMN Healthcare Services. AMN Healthcare Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than The Pennant Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for AMN Healthcare Services and The Pennant Group, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AMN Healthcare Services	0	4	4	0	2.50
The Pennant Group	0	1	7	0	2.88

AMN Healthcare Services currently has a consensus price target of $36.00, suggesting a potential upside of 4.16%. The Pennant Group has a consensus price target of $41.60, suggesting a potential upside of 2.04%. Given AMN Healthcare Services’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe AMN Healthcare Services is more favorable than The Pennant Group.

Profitability

This table compares AMN Healthcare Services and The Pennant Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AMN Healthcare Services	3.06%	19.92%	5.93%
The Pennant Group	2.93%	10.33%	4.20%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

99.2% of AMN Healthcare Services shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 85.9% of The Pennant Group shares are held by institutional investors. 1.1% of AMN Healthcare Services shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 6.9% of The Pennant Group shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

AMN Healthcare Services has a beta of 0.38, meaning that its share price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, The Pennant Group has a beta of 1.27, meaning that its share price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500.

About AMN Healthcare Services

AMN Healthcare Services, Inc. provides healthcare workforce solutions and staffing services to healthcare facilities in the United States. It operates through three segments: Nurse and Allied Solutions, Physician and Leadership Solutions, and Technology and Workforce Solutions. The Nurse and Allied Solutions segment offers travel nurse staffing, labor disruption staffing, local staffing, international nurse and allied permanent placement, and allied staffing solutions. The Physician and Leadership Solutions segment provides locum tenens staffing, healthcare interim leadership staffing, executive search, and physician permanent placement solutions. The Technology and Workforce Solutions segment offers language services, vendor management systems, workforce optimization, and outsourced solutions. The company also provides allied health professionals, such as physical therapists, respiratory therapists, occupational therapists, medical and radiology technologists, lab technicians, speech pathologists, rehabilitation assistants, and pharmacists. It offers its services under the brands, including AMN Healthcare, Nursefinders, HealthSource Global Staffing, O'Grady Peyton International, Connetics, Medical Search International, DRW Healthcare Staffing, and B.E. Smith. AMN Healthcare Services, Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

About The Pennant Group

The Pennant Group, Inc. provides healthcare services in the United States. It operates in two segments, Home Health and Hospice Services, and Senior Living Services. The company offers home health services, including clinical services, such as nursing, speech, occupational and physical therapy, medical social work, and home health aide services; and hospice services comprising clinical care, education, and counseling services for the physical, spiritual, and psychosocial needs of terminally ill patients and their families. It also provides senior living services, such as residential accommodations, activities, meals, housekeeping, and assistance in the activities of daily living to seniors who are independent or who require some support. The company operates home health, hospice, and home care agencies, as well as senior living communities throughout Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. The Pennant Group, Inc. was incorporated in 2019 and is headquartered in Eagle, Idaho.