Head to Head Analysis: Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) and Avitar (OTCMKTS:AVTI)

Avitar (OTCMKTS:AVTI) and Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) are both medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership and dividends.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

87.0% of Becton, Dickinson and Company shares are held by institutional investors. 7.4% of Avitar shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of Becton, Dickinson and Company shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Avitar and Becton, Dickinson and Company”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Avitar	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Becton, Dickinson and Company	$21.84 billion	2.56	$1.68 billion	$5.83	33.66

Becton, Dickinson and Company has higher revenue and earnings than Avitar.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Avitar and Becton, Dickinson and Company, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Avitar	0	0	0	0	0.00
Becton, Dickinson and Company	0	9	4	0	2.31

Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus price target of $205.64, indicating a potential upside of 4.79%. Given Becton, Dickinson and Company’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Becton, Dickinson and Company is more favorable than Avitar.

Profitability

This table compares Avitar and Becton, Dickinson and Company’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Avitar	N/A	N/A	N/A
Becton, Dickinson and Company	7.68%	16.42%	7.58%

Summary

Becton, Dickinson and Company beats Avitar on 8 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Avitar

Avitar, Inc. is a holding company which through its subsidiaries designs, develops, manufactures, and markets diagnostic test products and proprietary hydrophilic polyurethane foam disposables for medical, diagnostics, dental, and consumer applications in the United States. It offers ORALscreen 4 and ORALscreen DRUGOMETER, the oral fluid-based onsite assay systems, for detecting drugs of abuse, such as opiates, including heroin, morphine, codeine, and synthetic opiates comprising oxycocone-oxycontin, percoset, and hydrocodone-vicodin; cocaine such as crack; marijuana; and methamphetamines, including meth and ecstasy. The company also provides foam disposable products including medical-grade hydrophilic polyurethane foam disposables such as wound dressings comprising Hydrasorb, a wound dressing product for exudating wounds; and various custom foam products comprising a sinus dressing and a device used by astronauts for relieving ear pressure while in a pressurized space suit. In addition, it develops specialty wound dressings for the cardiac catheter lab market, as well as the Illizarov Dressing used for dressing external bone fixators in orthopedic procedures. The company markets its products and services to employers, diagnostic test distributors, medical supply companies, governmental agencies, schools, and corporations through direct sales force and strategic partners, as well as through a network of distributors. Avitar, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is based in Canton, Massachusetts with Additional office in Calgary, Canada.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

Becton, Dickinson and Company develops, manufactures, and sells medical supplies, devices, laboratory equipment, and diagnostic products for healthcare institutions, physicians, life science researchers, clinical laboratories, pharmaceutical industry, and the general public worldwide. The company operates in three segments: BD Medical, BD Life Sciences, and BD Interventional. The BD Medical segment provides peripheral intravenous (IV) and advanced peripheral catheters, central lines, acute dialysis catheters, vascular access technology, vascular care and preparation products, needle-free IV connectors and extensions sets, closed-system drug transfer devices, hazardous drug detections, hypodermic syringes and needles, anesthesia needles and trays, enteral syringes, and sharps disposal systems; IV medication safety and infusion therapy delivery systems, medication compounding workflow systems, automated medication dispensing and supply management systems, and medication inventory optimization and tracking systems; and prefillable drug delivery systems. The BD Life Sciences segment offers specimen and blood collection products; automated blood and tuberculosis culturing, molecular testing, microorganism identification and drug susceptibility, and liquid-based cytology systems, as well as rapid diagnostic assays, microbiology laboratory automation products, and plated media products; and fluorescence-activated cell sorters and analyzers, antibodies and kits, reagent systems, and solutions for single-cell gene expression analysis, as well as clinical oncology, immunological, and transplantation diagnostic/monitoring reagents and analyzers. The BD Interventional segment provides hernia and soft tissue repair, biological and bioresorbable grafts, biosurgery, and other surgical products; surgical infection prevention; peripheral intervention products; and urology and critical care products. The company was founded in 1897 and is headquartered in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey.