Pro-Dex (NASDAQ:PDEX) versus Cooper Companies (NASDAQ:COO) Critical Analysis
by Kim Johansen · The Markets DailyCooper Companies (NASDAQ:COO – Get Free Report) and Pro-Dex (NASDAQ:PDEX – Get Free Report) are both medical companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.
Volatility and Risk
Cooper Companies has a beta of 1.05, suggesting that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pro-Dex has a beta of -0.09, suggesting that its share price is 109% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Cooper Companies and Pro-Dex, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Cooper Companies | 2 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 2.50 |
| Pro-Dex | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2.50 |
Cooper Companies currently has a consensus target price of $90.15, indicating a potential upside of 9.12%. Pro-Dex has a consensus target price of $56.00, indicating a potential upside of 41.95%. Given Pro-Dex’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Pro-Dex is more favorable than Cooper Companies.
Profitability
This table compares Cooper Companies and Pro-Dex’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Cooper Companies | 9.16% | 10.02% | 6.69% |
| Pro-Dex | 15.94% | 23.64% | 13.73% |
Institutional & Insider Ownership
24.4% of Cooper Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 15.3% of Pro-Dex shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.0% of Cooper Companies shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 45.9% of Pro-Dex shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares Cooper Companies and Pro-Dex”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Cooper Companies | $4.09 billion | 3.96 | $374.90 million | $1.88 | 43.95 |
| Pro-Dex | $66.59 million | 1.93 | $8.98 million | $3.35 | 11.78 |
Cooper Companies has higher revenue and earnings than Pro-Dex. Pro-Dex is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cooper Companies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Cooper Companies beats Pro-Dex on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Cooper Companies
The Cooper Companies, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets contact lens wearers. The company operates in two segments, CooperVision and CooperSurgical. The CooperVision segment provides spherical lense, including lenses that correct near and farsightedness; and toric and multifocal lenses comprising lenses correcting vision challenges, such as astigmatism, presbyopia, and myopia in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific. The CooperSurgical segment focuses on family and women's health care, which provides fertility products and services, medical devices, and contraception, as well as cryostorage, such as cord blood and cord tissue storage to health care professionals and patients worldwide. It offers surgical and office products, including endosee endometrial imaging products, fetal pillow cephalic elevation devices for use in cesarean sections, illuminated speculum products, lone star retractor systems, loop electrosurgical excision procedure products, mara water ablation systems, paragard contraceptive IUDs, point-of-care, and uterine positioning products, as well as cryostorage, such as cord blood and cord tissue storage; fertility products and services, such as fertility consumables and equipment, donor gamete services, and genomic services, including genetic testing. The company sells its products to distributors, group purchasing organizations, eye care and health care professionals, including independent practices, corporate retailers, hospitals and clinics, and authorized resellers. The Cooper Companies, Inc. was founded in 1958 and is headquartered in San Ramon, California.
About Pro-Dex
Pro-Dex, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and sells powered surgical instruments for medical device original equipment manufacturers worldwide. The company offers autoclavable, battery-powered and electric, and multi-function surgical drivers and shavers that are primarily used in the orthopedic, thoracic, and craniomaxillofacial markets. It also provides engineering, quality, and regulatory consulting services; and manufactures and sells rotary air motors to various industries. The company's products are used in hospitals, medical engineering labs, scientific research facilities, and high-tech manufacturing operations. Pro-Dex, Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.