Varex Imaging (NASDAQ:VREX) versus TriSalus Life Sciences (NASDAQ:TLSI) Head-To-Head Comparison

Varex Imaging (NASDAQ:VREX) and TriSalus Life Sciences (NASDAQ:TLSI) are both small-cap medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends and earnings.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

2.6% of TriSalus Life Sciences shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.3% of Varex Imaging shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 27.5% of TriSalus Life Sciences shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Varex Imaging and TriSalus Life Sciences”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Varex Imaging	$811.00 million	0.41	-$47.70 million	($1.03)	-7.89
TriSalus Life Sciences	$29.43 million	6.70	-$30.05 million	($1.12)	-4.65

TriSalus Life Sciences has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Varex Imaging. Varex Imaging is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than TriSalus Life Sciences, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Varex Imaging and TriSalus Life Sciences, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Varex Imaging	0	0	1	1	3.50
TriSalus Life Sciences	0	0	6	2	3.25

Varex Imaging currently has a consensus target price of $22.50, indicating a potential upside of 176.75%. TriSalus Life Sciences has a consensus target price of $10.75, indicating a potential upside of 106.33%. Given Varex Imaging’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Varex Imaging is more favorable than TriSalus Life Sciences.

Volatility and Risk

Varex Imaging has a beta of 0.66, indicating that its share price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, TriSalus Life Sciences has a beta of 0.47, indicating that its share price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Varex Imaging and TriSalus Life Sciences’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Varex Imaging	-5.08%	4.91%	2.16%
TriSalus Life Sciences	-84.67%	N/A	-111.63%

Summary

Varex Imaging beats TriSalus Life Sciences on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Varex Imaging

Varex Imaging Corporation designs, manufactures, and sells X-ray imaging components. The company operates through two segments, Medical and Industrial. The Medical segment designs, manufactures, sells, and services X-ray imaging components, comprising X-ray tubes, digital detectors and accessories, ionization chambers, high voltage connectors, image-processing software and workstations, 3D reconstruction software, computer-aided diagnostic software, collimators, automatic exposure control devices, generators, and heat exchangers. This segment's products are used in a range of applications, including CT, mammography, oncology, cardiac, surgery, dental, and other diagnostic radiography uses. The Industrial segment designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and services Linatron X-ray linear accelerators, X-ray tubes, digital detectors, high voltage connectors, and coolers for use in security and inspection applications, such as baggage screening at airports, cargo screening at ports and borders, and nondestructive testing, irradiation, and inspection in various applications. The company sells its products through imaging system original equipment manufacturers, independent service companies, and distributors, as well as directly to end-users. It has operations in North America, South America, Europe, Russia, the Middle East, India, Africa, Asia, and Australia. Varex Imaging Corporation was incorporated in 2016 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

About TriSalus Life Sciences

TriSalus Life Sciences, Inc., a medical technology company, researches, develops, and sells drug delivery technologies and immune-oncology therapeutics for the treatment of liver and pancreatic cancer. The company offers Pressure Enabled Drug Delivery infusion systems, such as the TriNav infusion system, which is used in transarterial radioembolization and chemoembolization procedures for patients with liver cancer and metastases; and the Pancreatic Retrograde Venous Infusion device, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial, for locally advanced pancreatic cancer. It also develops nelitolimod, an investigational immunotherapeutic in Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of uveal melanoma with liver metastases, hepatocellular carcinoma, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, and locally advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The company serves interventional radiologists, IR technicians, medical oncologists, nursing support, value analysis committee staff, and patients through its sales representatives and sales managers. TriSalus Life Sciences, Inc. was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Westminster, Colorado.