IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) versus Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Head to Head Analysis

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) and IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) are both large-cap healthcare companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Abbott Laboratories and IDEXX Laboratories”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Abbott Laboratories	$44.33 billion	4.05	$6.52 billion	$3.09	33.56
IDEXX Laboratories	$4.30 billion	10.26	$1.06 billion	$14.22	39.43

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

Profitability

This table compares Abbott Laboratories and IDEXX Laboratories’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Abbott Laboratories	9.75%	17.97%	9.22%
IDEXX Laboratories	25.03%	71.96%	33.60%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

75.2% of Abbott Laboratories shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.8% of IDEXX Laboratories shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of Abbott Laboratories shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of IDEXX Laboratories shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Abbott Laboratories has a beta of 0.59, suggesting that its stock price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, IDEXX Laboratories has a beta of 1.55, suggesting that its stock price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Abbott Laboratories and IDEXX Laboratories, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Abbott Laboratories	0	4	22	2	2.93
IDEXX Laboratories	0	5	7	0	2.58

Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus price target of $118.32, indicating a potential upside of 14.10%. IDEXX Laboratories has a consensus price target of $744.09, indicating a potential upside of 32.71%. Given IDEXX Laboratories’ higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe IDEXX Laboratories is more favorable than Abbott Laboratories.

Summary

IDEXX Laboratories beats Abbott Laboratories on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Laboratories, together with its subsidiaries, discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells health care products worldwide. It operates in four segments: Established Pharmaceutical Products, Diagnostic Products, Nutritional Products, and Medical Devices. The company provides generic pharmaceuticals for the treatment of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, irritable bowel syndrome or biliary spasm, intrahepatic cholestasis or depressive symptoms, gynecological disorder, hormone replacement therapy, dyslipidemia, hypertension, hypothyroidism, Ménière’s disease and vestibular vertigo, pain, fever, inflammation, and migraine, as well as provides anti-infective clarithromycin, influenza vaccine, and products to regulate physiological rhythm of the colon. It also offers laboratory and transfusion medicine systems in the areas of immunoassay, clinical chemistry, hematology, and transfusion; molecular diagnostics polymerase chain reaction instrument systems that automate the extraction, purification, and preparation of DNA and RNA from patient samples, and detect and measure infectious agents; point of care systems; cartridges for testing blood gas, chemistry, electrolytes, coagulation, and immunoassay; rapid diagnostics lateral flow testing products; molecular point-of-care testing for HIV, SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and B, RSV, and strep A; cardiometabolic test systems; drug and alcohol test, and remote patient monitoring and consumer self-test systems; and informatics and automation solutions for laboratories. In addition, the company provides pediatric and adult nutritional products; rhythm management, electrophysiology, heart failure, vascular, and structural heart devices for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases; diabetes care products, such as glucose and blood glucose monitoring systems; and neuromodulation devices for the management of chronic pain and movement disorders. Abbott Laboratories was founded in 1888 and is based in North Chicago, Illinois.

About IDEXX Laboratories

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. develops, manufactures, and distributes products primarily for the companion animal veterinary, livestock and poultry, dairy, and water testing markets in Africa, the Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin America, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Companion Animal Group; Water Quality Products; and Livestock, Poultry and Dairy. It also provides point-of-care veterinary diagnostic products, including instruments, consumables, and rapid assay test kits; veterinary reference laboratory diagnostic and consulting services; practice management and diagnostic imaging systems and services for veterinarians; and health monitoring, biological materials testing, and laboratory diagnostic instruments, and services for biomedical research community. In addition, the company offers diagnostic and health-monitoring products for livestock, poultry, and dairy; products that test water for various microbiological contaminants; point-of-care electrolytes and blood gas analyzers; in-clinic chemistry, blood and urine chemistry, hematology, immunoassay, urinalysis, and coagulation analyzers; and SNAP rapid assays test kits. Further, it provides Colilert, Colilert-18, and Colisure tests, which detect the presence of total coliforms and E. coli in water; Enterolert, Pseudalert, Filta-Max and Filta-Max xpress, Legiolert, and Quanti-Tray products; and veterinary software and services for independent veterinary clinics and corporate groups. Additionally, the company offers human medical point-of-care products and laboratory diagnostics services. The company markets its products through marketing, customer service, sales, and technical service groups, as well as through independent distributors and other resellers. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. was incorporated in 1983 and is headquartered in Westbrook, Maine.