Analyzing LivaNova (NASDAQ:LIVN) and Olympus (OTCMKTS:OCPNY)

Olympus (OTCMKTS:OCPNY) and LivaNova (NASDAQ:LIVN) are both healthcare companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability and risk.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Olympus and LivaNova, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Olympus	0	0	1	0	3.00
LivaNova	0	4	6	1	2.73

LivaNova has a consensus target price of $87.75, indicating a potential upside of 13.11%. Given LivaNova’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe LivaNova is more favorable than Olympus.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Olympus and LivaNova”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Olympus	$7.74 billion	2.99	$1.03 billion	$0.82	21.95
LivaNova	$1.39 billion	3.08	-$242.47 million	$3.38	22.95

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

0.0% of Olympus shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.6% of LivaNova shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of LivaNova shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Olympus and LivaNova’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Olympus	13.80%	24.30%	9.30%
LivaNova	12.82%	16.35%	7.76%

Volatility and Risk

Olympus has a beta of 0.7, suggesting that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, LivaNova has a beta of 0.87, suggesting that its stock price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

LivaNova beats Olympus on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Olympus

Olympus Corp. engages in the manufacture and sale of precision machineries and instruments. It operates through the following segments: Medical, Scientific Solutions, Imaging, and Others. The Medical segment covers digestive, surgical, and ultrasonic endoscopy as well as endoscopic treatment tools. The Scientific Solutions segment manufactures and sells biological and industrial microscopes, industrial endoscopes, and non-destructive testing equipment. The Imaging segment deals with digital cameras and recording devices. The Others segment includes biomaterial manufacturing and sales business. The company was founded by Takeshi Yamashita on October 12, 1919 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

About LivaNova

LivaNova PLC, a medical device company, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells therapeutic solutions worldwide. The company operates through Cardiopulmonary, Neuromodulation, and Advanced Circulatory Support segments. The Cardiopulmonary segment develops, produces, and sells cardiopulmonary products, including oxygenators, heart-lung machines, autotransfusion systems, perfusion tubing systems, cannulae, connect, and other related products. The Neuromodulation segment designs, develops, markets, and sells VNS Therapy System, an implantable pulse generator and connective lead that stimulates the vagus nerve; difficult-to-treat depression and drug-resistant epilepsy devices. The Advanced Circulatory Support segment develops, produces, and sells temporary life support products. It serves perfusionists, neurologists, neurosurgeons, and other physicians, as well as hospitals, other medical institutions, and healthcare providers. The company sells its products through direct sales representatives and independent distributors. LivaNova PLC was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.