Reviewing Spectral Medical (OTCMKTS:EDTXF) and West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST)

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST) and Spectral Medical (OTCMKTS:EDTXF) are both medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and dividends.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for West Pharmaceutical Services and Spectral Medical, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
West Pharmaceutical Services	0	1	4	0	2.80
Spectral Medical	0	0	0	0	0.00

West Pharmaceutical Services presently has a consensus price target of $403.75, suggesting a potential upside of 25.23%. Given West Pharmaceutical Services’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe West Pharmaceutical Services is more favorable than Spectral Medical.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

93.9% of West Pharmaceutical Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of West Pharmaceutical Services shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Spectral Medical shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares West Pharmaceutical Services and Spectral Medical’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
West Pharmaceutical Services	17.37%	18.41%	13.74%
Spectral Medical	-1,245.87%	N/A	-351.89%

Risk and Volatility

West Pharmaceutical Services has a beta of 1.01, meaning that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Spectral Medical has a beta of 0.87, meaning that its stock price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares West Pharmaceutical Services and Spectral Medical”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
West Pharmaceutical Services	$2.95 billion	7.92	$593.40 million	$6.74	47.83
Spectral Medical	$1.18 million	102.21	-$11.60 million	($0.07)	-6.06

West Pharmaceutical Services has higher revenue and earnings than Spectral Medical. Spectral Medical is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than West Pharmaceutical Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

West Pharmaceutical Services beats Spectral Medical on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products. The Proprietary Products segment offers stoppers and seals for injectable packaging systems; syringe and cartridge components, including custom solutions for the needs of injectable drug applications, as well as administration systems that enhance the safe delivery of drugs through advanced reconstitution, mixing, and transfer technologies; and films, coatings, washing, and vision inspection and sterilization processes and services to enhance the quality of packaging components. This segment also provides drug containment solutions, including Crystal Zenith, a cyclic olefin polymer in the form of vials, syringes, and cartridges; and self-injection devices; and a range of integrated solutions, including analytical lab services, pre-approval primary packaging support and engineering development, regulatory expertise, and after-sales technical support. This segment serves biologic, generic, and pharmaceutical drug companies. The Contract-Manufactured Products segment is involved in the design, manufacture, and automated assembly of devices used in surgical, diagnostic, ophthalmic, injectable, and other drug delivery systems, as well as consumer products. The company serves pharmaceutical, diagnostic, and medical device companies. It sells and distributes its products through its sales force and distribution network, contract sales agents, and regional distributors. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. was founded in 1923 and is headquartered in Exton, Pennsylvania.

About Spectral Medical

Spectral Medical Inc. focuses on the development and commercialization of products for the treatment of septic shock in the United States, Italy, Ireland, and internationally. The company markets Endotoxin Activity Assay, a rapid in vitro diagnostic test for the detection of components of gram negative bacterial cell wall; and Polymyxin B Hemoperfusion, a therapeutic hemoperfusion device that removes endotoxin from the bloodstream. It also develops and manufactures monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies, recombinant cardiac proteins, and calibrators for use in the research and development, as well as products that are manufactured by other diagnostic companies. The company was formerly known as Spectral Diagnostics Inc. and changed its name to Spectral Medical Inc. in December 2014. Spectral Medical Inc. was incorporated in 1991 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.