ENSIGN GROUP, INC vs Sotera Health Co, two Medical Care stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Ensign's balance sheet carries 0.06 turns of debt, Sotera's 3.46, and that fifty-fold gap in leverage is the entire architecture of this pair: a skilled-nursing consolidator that self-funds its acquisitions against a sterilization monopolist still carrying its buyout. Sotera's moat is real, a 52.5% gross margin business hospitals cannot easily leave, and its 18.9% return on equity edges Ensign's 15.3%, though deleveraging claims most of its cash (1.9% free-cash yield against 6.1%). The market prices the moat at 42.4 times earnings and the machine at 26.6. Sixteen turns of premium for defensibility over flexibility; the cheaper page is the one that could buy things tomorrow.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | ENSG | SHC |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $163.16 | $17.38 |
| Market cap | $9.7B | $5.0B |
| Sector | Medical Care | Medical Care |
| Stage | Growth | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +6.5% | +15.4% |
| P/E | 26.6 | 42.4 |
| P/B | 4.10 | 8.03 |
| P/S | 1.84 | 4.20 |
| EV/EBITDA | 16.7 | 271.2 |
| Revenue growth | +19.2% | +7.5% |
| Gross margin | — | 52.5% |
| Operating margin | 9.0% | — |
| Net margin | 6.9% | 9.9% |
| Return on equity | 15.3% | 18.9% |
| Return on assets | 6.5% | 3.6% |
| Return on invested capital | 13.9% | — |
| FCF yield | 6.1% | 1.9% |
| Dividend yield | 0.1% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.06 | 3.46 |
| Current ratio | 1.56 | 2.82 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 3.37 | 1.44 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 4 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.