Head-To-Head Analysis: Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) and LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST)

LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST) and Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) are both healthcare companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, earnings, risk and analyst recommendations.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

85.5% of LifeStance Health Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.5% of LifeStance Health Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.0% of Surgery Partners shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares LifeStance Health Group and Surgery Partners”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
LifeStance Health Group	$1.42 billion	3.24	$9.66 million	$0.13	92.77
Surgery Partners	$3.31 billion	0.54	-$77.90 million	($0.70)	-19.49

LifeStance Health Group has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Surgery Partners. Surgery Partners is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than LifeStance Health Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

LifeStance Health Group has a beta of 1.24, meaning that its share price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Surgery Partners has a beta of 1.9, meaning that its share price is 90% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for LifeStance Health Group and Surgery Partners, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
LifeStance Health Group	0	4	6	1	2.73
Surgery Partners	1	3	7	0	2.55

LifeStance Health Group presently has a consensus price target of $13.12, indicating a potential upside of 8.83%. Surgery Partners has a consensus price target of $19.00, indicating a potential upside of 39.30%. Given Surgery Partners’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Surgery Partners is more favorable than LifeStance Health Group.

Profitability

This table compares LifeStance Health Group and Surgery Partners’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
LifeStance Health Group	3.19%	3.39%	2.33%
Surgery Partners	-2.63%	0.88%	0.34%

Summary

LifeStance Health Group beats Surgery Partners on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About LifeStance Health Group

LifeStance Health Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides outpatient mental health services to children, adolescents, adults, and geriatrics in the United States. The company offers patients a suite of mental health services, including psychiatric evaluations and treatment, psychological, and neuropsychological testing, as well as individual, family, and group therapy. It treats a range of mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, psychotic disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder. In addition, the company operates an outpatient mental health platform, as well as offers patient care virtually through its online delivery platform or in-person at its centers. LifeStance Health Group, Inc. was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona.

About Surgery Partners

Surgery Partners, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates a network of surgical facilities and ancillary services in the United States. The company provides ambulatory surgery centers and surgical hospitals that offer non-emergency surgical procedures in various specialties, including orthopedics and pain management, ophthalmology, gastroenterology, and general surgery. It offers diagnostic imaging, laboratory, obstetrics, oncology, pharmacy, physical therapy, and wound care; and ancillary services, including multi-specialty physician practices, urgent care facilities, and anesthesia services. In addition, it offers single- and multi-specialty facilities. Surgery Partners, Inc. was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee.