Critical Analysis: Guardian Pharmacy Services (NYSE:GRDN) versus BrightSpring Health Services (NASDAQ:BTSG)
by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets DailyBrightSpring Health Services (NASDAQ:BTSG – Get Free Report) and Guardian Pharmacy Services (NYSE:GRDN – Get Free Report) are both healthcare companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings and valuation.
Profitability
This table compares BrightSpring Health Services and Guardian Pharmacy Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| BrightSpring Health Services | 2.55% | 16.73% | 5.24% |
| Guardian Pharmacy Services | 4.50% | 29.97% | 16.18% |
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares BrightSpring Health Services and Guardian Pharmacy Services”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| BrightSpring Health Services | $12.91 billion | 0.85 | $190.67 million | $1.66 | 33.60 |
| Guardian Pharmacy Services | $1.45 billion | 1.49 | $49.22 million | $1.03 | 41.94 |
BrightSpring Health Services has higher revenue and earnings than Guardian Pharmacy Services. BrightSpring Health Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Guardian Pharmacy Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk and Volatility
BrightSpring Health Services has a beta of 1.84, suggesting that its share price is 84% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Guardian Pharmacy Services has a beta of 0.06, suggesting that its share price is 94% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for BrightSpring Health Services and Guardian Pharmacy Services, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| BrightSpring Health Services | 0 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 3.10 |
| Guardian Pharmacy Services | 0 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 3.00 |
BrightSpring Health Services currently has a consensus target price of $70.71, indicating a potential upside of 26.76%. Guardian Pharmacy Services has a consensus target price of $45.57, indicating a potential upside of 5.49%. Given BrightSpring Health Services’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe BrightSpring Health Services is more favorable than Guardian Pharmacy Services.
Summary
BrightSpring Health Services beats Guardian Pharmacy Services on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About BrightSpring Health Services
BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. operates a home and community-based healthcare services platform in the United States. The company's platform focuses on delivering pharmacy and provider services, including clinical and supportive care in home and community settings to Medicare, Medicaid, and insured populations. It serves patients through clinical providers and pharmacists. The company was formerly known as Phoenix Parent Holdings Inc. and changed its name to BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. in May 2021. BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.
About Guardian Pharmacy Services
Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc., a pharmacy service company, provides a suite of technology-enabled services designed to help residents of long-term health care facilities (LTCFs) in the United States. Its individualized clinical, drug dispensing, and administration capabilities are used to serve the needs of residents in lower acuity LTCFs, such as assisted living facilities and behavioral health facilities and group homes. The company’s Guardian Compass includes dashboards created using data from its data warehouse to help its local pharmacies plan, track, and optimize their business operations; and GuardianShield Programs for LTCFs. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in Atlanta, Georgia.