SeaStar Medical (NASDAQ:ICU) and ICU Medical (NASDAQ:ICUI) Head-To-Head Analysis

ICU Medical (NASDAQ:ICUI) and SeaStar Medical (NASDAQ:ICU) are both healthcare companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability and risk.

Volatility & Risk

ICU Medical has a beta of 0.86, suggesting that its share price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SeaStar Medical has a beta of -1.09, suggesting that its share price is 209% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares ICU Medical and SeaStar Medical”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ICU Medical	$2.23 billion	1.81	$730,000.00	$1.18	136.78
SeaStar Medical	$1.23 million	12.73	-$12.15 million	($3.91)	-0.91

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

Profitability

This table compares ICU Medical and SeaStar Medical’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ICU Medical	1.39%	7.91%	4.17%
SeaStar Medical	-795.51%	-162.75%	-109.89%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

96.1% of ICU Medical shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 1.7% of SeaStar Medical shares are held by institutional investors. 2.1% of ICU Medical shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of SeaStar Medical shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for ICU Medical and SeaStar Medical, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ICU Medical	0	3	4	2	2.89
SeaStar Medical	1	0	1	0	2.00

ICU Medical presently has a consensus target price of $192.80, suggesting a potential upside of 19.45%. SeaStar Medical has a consensus target price of $8.00, suggesting a potential upside of 125.35%. Given SeaStar Medical’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe SeaStar Medical is more favorable than ICU Medical.

Summary

ICU Medical beats SeaStar Medical on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ICU Medical

ICU Medical, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells medical devices used in infusion therapy, vascular access, and vital care applications worldwide. Its infusion therapy products include needlefree products under the MicroClave, MicroClave Clear, and NanoClave brands; Neutron catheter patency devices; ChemoClave and ChemoLock closed system transfer devices, which are used to limit the escape of hazardous drugs or vapor concentrations, block the transfer of environmental contaminants into the system, and eliminates the risk of needlestick injury; Tego needle free connectors; Deltec GRIPPER non-coring needles for portal access; and ClearGuard, SwabCap, and SwabTip disinfection caps. The company provides IV therapy and diluents, such as sodium chloride, dextrose, balanced electrolyte solutions, lactated ringer's, ringer's, mannitol, sodium chloride/dextrose, and sterile water; and irrigation solutions comprising sodium chloride and sterile water irrigation, physiologic solutions, ringer's irrigation, acetic acid irrigation, glycine irrigation, sorbitol-mannitol irrigation, flexible containers, and pour bottle options. It offers infusion pumps under the Plum 360 and Plum Duo brands; ambulatory and syringe infusion hardware products; IV mediation safety software, including ICU Medical MedNet, an enterprise-class medication management platform; LifeShield and PharmGuard medication infusion safety software; hemodynamic monitoring products; anesthesia systems and devices, breathing circuits, ventilation, respiratory, and specialty airway products; temperature management solutions; anesthesia/pain management trays and components; and professional services. The company's customers include acute care hospitals, wholesalers, ambulatory clinics, and alternate site facilities, including outpatient clinics, home health care providers, and long-term care facilities. ICU Medical, Inc. was founded in 1984 and is based in San Clemente, California.

About SeaStar Medical

SeaStar Medical Holding Corporation, a medical device company, develops a platform therapy to reduce the consequences of hyperinflammation on vital organs in the United States. The company offers inflammatory response to fend off infections and repair damaged tissue in the body. It is also developing products in various therapeutic areas, including pediatric and adult acute kidney injury on CRRT; cardiorenal syndrome in congestive heart failure; myocardial stunning in end stage renal disease; and hepatorenal syndrome. The company is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.