FRESENIUS MEDICAL CARE AG vs Sotera Health Co, two Medical Care stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Fresenius Medical carries no net debt; Sotera carries 3.46 turns, and the pair prices the difference at eleven multiple turns in the levered company's favor: 42.4 times earnings for the sterilization moat against 12.7 for the dialysis utility. The economics do not justify the ordering: Fresenius earns a similar net margin, 6.1% against 9.9%, converts eleven times the free cash relative to price, 21.5% against 1.9%, and pays the only dividend. What Sotera has is pricing power in a niche with almost no substitutes; what Fresenius has is exposure to reimbursement politics in the largest care niche there is. The market has decided moats outrank balance sheets and cash combined; this page is that decision, priced.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | FMS | SHC |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $23.25 | $17.38 |
| Market cap | $13.6B | $5.0B |
| Sector | Medical Care | Medical Care |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | — | +15.4% |
| P/E | 12.7 | 42.4 |
| P/B | 0.87 | 8.03 |
| P/S | 0.64 | 4.20 |
| EV/EBITDA | 3.3 | 271.2 |
| Revenue growth | +1.5% | +7.5% |
| Gross margin | — | 52.5% |
| Operating margin | 11.7% | — |
| Net margin | 6.1% | 9.9% |
| Return on equity | 8.3% | 18.9% |
| Return on assets | 3.8% | 3.6% |
| Return on invested capital | 10.1% | — |
| FCF yield | 21.4% | 1.9% |
| Dividend yield | 1.7% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 3.46 |
| Current ratio | 1.26 | 2.82 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 1.76 | 1.44 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 8 / 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.