Financial Contrast: Arch Therapeutics (OTCMKTS:ARTH) vs. Stryker (NYSE:SYK)

Arch Therapeutics (OTCMKTS:ARTH – Get Rating) and Stryker (NYSE:SYK – Get Rating) are both medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Arch Therapeutics and Stryker’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Arch Therapeutics	-36,223.82%	N/A	-258.63%
Stryker	13.69%	22.27%	9.68%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Arch Therapeutics and Stryker’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Arch Therapeutics	$20,000.00	78,715.35	-$5.28 million	N/A	N/A
Stryker	$17.11 billion	5.60	$1.99 billion	$6.43	39.34

Stryker has higher revenue and earnings than Arch Therapeutics.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Arch Therapeutics and Stryker, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Arch Therapeutics	0	0	0	0	N/A
Stryker	0	7	12	0	2.63

Stryker has a consensus target price of $260.68, indicating a potential upside of 3.06%. Given Stryker’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Stryker is more favorable than Arch Therapeutics.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.0% of Arch Therapeutics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 77.1% of Stryker shares are held by institutional investors. 9.7% of Arch Therapeutics shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.5% of Stryker shares are held 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.

Volatility & Risk

Arch Therapeutics has a beta of 0.61, suggesting that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Stryker has a beta of 0.94, suggesting that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Stryker beats Arch Therapeutics on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Arch Therapeutics

(Get Rating)

Arch Therapeutics, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a biotechnology company in the United States. The company develops and markets products based on its AC5 self-assembling technology platform to stop bleeding and control leaking, as well as manages wounds during surgery, trauma, and interventional care or from disease. Its flagship products include AC5 advanced wound system and AC5 topical hemostat, which are intended for skin applications, such as management of complicated chronic wounds or acute surgical wounds. The company was founded in 2006 and is based in Framingham, Massachusetts.

About Stryker

(Get Rating)

Stryker Corp. operates as a medical technology company. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics & Spine and MedSurg & Neurotechnology. The Orthopaedics & Spine segment provides implants for use in total joint replacements, such as hip, knee, and shoulder, and trauma and extremities surgeries. This segment also offers spinal implant products comprising cervical and thoracolumbar systems that are used in spinal injury, complex spine and degenerative therapies. The MedSurg and Neurotechnology segment offers surgical equipment, patient & caregiver safety technologies, and surgical navigation systems, endoscopic and communications systems, patient handling, emergency medical equipment and intensive care disposable products, reprocessed and remanufactured medical devices, and other medical device products that are used in various medical specialties. This segment also provides neurotechnology products, which include products used for minimally invasive endovascular techniques, products for brain and open skull based surgical procedures, orthobiologic and biosurgery products, such as synthetic bone grafts and vertebral augmentation products, minimally invasive products fo