National Research (NASDAQ: NRCIA) and EXACT Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) are both business services companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, valuation, risk and earnings.
Volatility and Risk
Get National Research alerts:National Research has a beta of 1.68, suggesting that its share price is 68% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, EXACT Sciences has a beta of 0.97, suggesting that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares National Research and EXACT Sciences’ revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| National Research | $117.56 million | 6.99 | $22.94 million | $0.58 | 57.84 |
| EXACT Sciences | $265.99 million | 30.58 | -$114.39 million | ($0.99) | -67.40 |
National Research has higher earnings, but lower revenue than EXACT Sciences. EXACT Sciences is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than National Research, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for National Research and EXACT Sciences, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| National Research | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| EXACT Sciences | 0 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 2.77 |
EXACT Sciences has a consensus price target of $63.17, suggesting a potential downside of 5.34%. Given EXACT Sciences’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe EXACT Sciences is more favorable than National Research.
Profitability
This table compares National Research and EXACT Sciences’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| National Research | 19.52% | 27.45% | 19.09% |
| EXACT Sciences | -38.61% | -20.92% | -15.73% |
Dividends
National Research pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. EXACT Sciences does not pay a dividend. National Research pays out 69.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
33.6% of National Research shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.1% of EXACT Sciences shares are held by institutional investors. 5.7% of National Research shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.2% of EXACT Sciences shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Summary
National Research beats EXACT Sciences on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
National Research Company Profile
National Research Corporation provides analytics and insights that facilitate measurement and enhancement of the patient and employee experience in the United States and Canada. Its portfolio of subscription-based solutions provide actionable information and analysis to healthcare organizations and payers across a range of mission-critical, constituent-related elements, including patient experience, satisfaction, community population health risks, workforce engagement, community perceptions, and physician engagement. The company offers market insights solutions that allow the tracking of awareness, perception, and consistency of healthcare brands; assessment of competitive differentiators; and enhanced segmentation tools to evaluate needs, wants, and behaviors of communities through real-time competitive assessments and enhanced segmentation tools. It also provides experience solutions, such as patient and resident experience, workforce engagement, health risk assessments, transitions, and improvement tools. The company offers transitions solutions, which enable organizations to identify and manage high-risk patients to reduce readmissions, increase patient satisfaction and support safe care transitions; and risk assessment solutions that enable clients to segment populations and manage care for those who are most at risk, engage individuals, enhance preventative care, and manage wellness programs. It provides transparency solutions that allow healthcare organizations to share picture of their organization and ensure content informs in consumer decision-making; and governance solutions for not-for-profit hospital and health system boards of directors, executives, and physician leadership. The company serves integrated health systems and post-acute providers, such as home health, long term care, hospice, and payer organizations. The company was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska.
EXACT Sciences Company Profile
Exact Sciences Corporation, a molecular diagnostics company, focuses on developing products for the early detection and prevention of various cancers in the United States. The company offers Cologuard, a non-invasive stool-based DNA screening test for the early detection of colorectal cancer and pre-cancer. It has license agreements with MAYO Foundation for Medical Education and Research; and Hologic, Inc. Exact Sciences Corporation was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin.
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