LIVE
ABT
Abbott Laboratories · Healthcare
$88.41
-0.46% this month
VERSUS
⟷
COMPARE
BAX
Baxter International Inc. · Healthcare
$19.89
+8.51% this month
Scoreboard verdict
Across AI score, momentum, valuation, upside, operating margin
ABT
4
BAX
1
Comparison scoreboard
ABT LEADS 4/5AI Score
ABT ✓48.8
BAX 25.5
1Y Return
ABT ✓-33.16%
BAX -33.52%
Fwd P/E
ABT 14.55
BAX ✓10.36
Target Up.
ABT ✓+32.16%
BAX +3.27%
Op. Margin
ABT ✓13.47%
BAX 6.03%
Metrics last refreshed: 6/20/2026
Quick take
ABT vs BAX Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Abbott and Baxter both serve hospital and patient markets, but with very different product mixes and growth profiles. Abbott is a diversified medtech with high-growth CGM driving above-market performance. Baxter is a hospital essentials company focused on renal care, IV solutions, and patient monitoring — lower-growth but essential to hospital operations. Abbott is the higher-growth compounder; Baxter is the value-oriented essential hospital product supplier.
ABT vs BAX is a high-growth medical device innovator with FreeStyle Libre and structural heart driving premium returns (Abbott) versus a hospital essentials company in deleveraging recovery after the Hillrom acquisition (Baxter) — Abbott's growth profile vs Baxter's essential hospital product stability and debt paydown.
Live analysis · updated 6/20/2026
ABT holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. ABT has delivered stronger 1-year price return (-33.16% vs -33.52%), though BAX trades at the lower forward P/E (10.36x vs 14.55x). ABT leads on both revenue growth (7.80%) and operating margin (13.47%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for ABT (+32.16%) than for BAX (+3.27%).
Normalized 1Y performance
ABT
BAX
Recent returns
ABT
BAX
Analyst price targets & sentiment
ABT · 25 analysts
STRONG BUYHOLDSTRONG SELL
Buy (1.9/5.0)
Price target range
analyst high$159.00
analyst mean$116.54
current price$88.41
+32.2% upside to analyst mean
BAX
Price target range
analyst mean$21.54
current price$19.89
+3.3% upside to analyst mean
Who should consider this stock?
ABT may suit investors who:
- →prefer a medtech compounder with FreeStyle Libre CGM delivering above-market growth alongside mature diagnostics and nutrition segments
- →value Abbott's long dividend history and consistent execution across economic cycles in multiple healthcare categories
- →want high-growth medtech exposure at a quality premium reflecting FreeStyle Libre's subscription-like CGM market leadership
- →are comfortable with COVID diagnostic revenue normalization and Dexcom competition challenging FreeStyle Libre's market position
BAX may suit investors who:
- →prefer a hospital essentials company providing renal care, IV solutions, and patient monitoring with resilient demand regardless of economic conditions
- →value Baxter's deleveraging story — Hillrom acquisition debt reduction creates financial flexibility and potential valuation re-rating
- →want medtech value exposure at lower multiples reflecting Baxter's slower growth and Hillrom integration overhang
- →are comfortable with hospital GPO pricing pressure, Hillrom integration complexity, and dialysis market mix shift dynamics
Performance & AI score
| Metric | ABT | BAX |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 48.8 | 25.5 |
| AI rank | #541 | #2753 |
| Latest close | $88.41 | $19.89 |
| 1M return | -0.46% | +8.51% |
| 6M return | -30.23% | +3.11% |
| 1Y return | -33.16% | -33.52% |
$10,000 invested — hypothetical growth (dividends reinvested)
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | ABT | BAX |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $6.68K (-33.2%) started 2025-06-18 | $6.67K (-33.3%) started 2025-06-18 |
| 5Y ago | $9.22K (-7.8%) started 2021-06-21 | $2.92K (-70.8%) started 2021-06-21 |
| 10Y ago | $33.17K (+231.7%) started 2016-06-20 | $5.94K (-40.6%) started 2016-06-20 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
Valuation & upside potential
| Metric | ABT | BAX |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $153.59B | $10.77B |
| Trailing P/E | 24.70 | 87.85 |
| Forward P/E | 14.55 | 10.36 |
| Price/Sales | 5.49 | N/A |
| EV/Revenue | 4.01 | 1.63 |
| Analyst target | $116.54 | $21.54 |
| Target upside | +32.16% | +3.27% |
Growth, profitability & risk
| Metric | ABT | BAX |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 7.80% | 2.90% |
| Earnings growth | -19.70% | 237.90% |
| EPS growth | -19.70% | +237.90% |
| FCF margin | +14.05% | +7.96% |
| Operating margin | 13.47% | 6.03% |
| Profit margin | 13.90% | -9.70% |
| ROIC proxy | 12.33% | -15.01% |
| Return on equity | 12.33% | -15.01% |
| Dividend yield | 2.86% | 0.96% |
| Beta | 0.62 | 0.64 |
| Debt/equity | 64.77 | 161.02 |
| Current ratio | 1.39 | 1.85 |
| Quick ratio | 0.84 | 1.02 |
Drawdown & downside risk
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
1Y risk snapshot
ABT max drawdown40.21%
BAX max drawdown49.41%
ABT max wkly drop13.11%
BAX max wkly drop24.85%
5Y risk snapshot
ABT max drawdown40.85%
BAX max drawdown80.87%
ABT max wkly drop13.11%
BAX max wkly drop24.85%
10Y risk snapshot
ABT max drawdown40.85%
BAX max drawdown81.40%
ABT max wkly drop16.72%
BAX max wkly drop24.85%
Performance metrics by period
| Period | Metric | ABT | BAX |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | -33.23% | -33.26% |
| CAGR | -33.27% | -33.29% | |
| Sharpe ratio | -1.70 | -0.72 | |
| Max drawdown | 40.21% | 49.41% | |
| Max daily drop | 10.04% | 22.42% | |
| Max wkly drop | 13.11% | 24.85% | |
| 5Y | Growth | -14.60% | -73.37% |
| CAGR | -3.11% | -23.28% | |
| Sharpe ratio | -0.24 | -0.74 | |
| Max drawdown | 40.85% | 80.87% | |
| Max daily drop | 10.04% | 22.42% | |
| Max wkly drop | 13.11% | 24.85% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +176.78% | -49.01% |
| CAGR | +10.72% | -6.52% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.36 | -0.23 | |
| Max drawdown | 40.85% | 81.40% | |
| Max daily drop | 10.04% | 22.42% | |
| Max wkly drop | 16.72% | 24.85% |
Business comparison
| Category | ABT | BAX |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Abbott Laboratories | Baxter International Inc. |
| Sector | Healthcare | Healthcare |
| Industry | Medical Devices | N/A |
| Core business | Abbott is a diversified medical device, diagnostics, nutrition, and pharmaceutical company with FreeStyle Libre CGM as its highest-growth product. Abbott's cardiac devices, structural heart systems, and diabetes management tools serve active monitoring and intervention markets, while its diagnostics and nutrition segments provide stable recurring revenue across the healthcare system. | Baxter International is a hospital products and medical device company focused on renal care (peritoneal dialysis, hemodialysis), medication delivery (IV solutions, infusion pumps), nutritional products, and advanced surgery. Baxter sold its BioPharma Solutions (injectable drugs) business to create Simtra BioPharma, and its Hillrom acquisition (hospital beds, patient monitoring) was integrated into Baxter's portfolio. Baxter serves hospitals worldwide with products essential to acute and chronic patient care. |
| Investor focus | Investors track FreeStyle Libre CGM revenue, cardiac device recovery, structural heart growth, and Diagnostics core lab as four distinct growth and stability pillars in Abbott's diversified portfolio. | Investors track renal therapy growth, hospital products revenue from medication delivery and nutritional products, operating margin improvement, and debt reduction from the Hillrom acquisition leverage. |
ABT strengths
- →FreeStyle Libre is the market-leading CGM platform with subscriber-like recurring sensor revenue and international expansion runway across Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes markets
- →50+ years of consecutive dividend increases reflect Abbott's durable business model across multiple product categories and economic cycles
- →Medical devices (cardiovascular, structural heart) and diagnostics are high-margin, recurring-revenue businesses with strong hospital purchasing relationships
BAX strengths
- →Renal care (peritoneal dialysis) provides essential, recurring revenue from chronic kidney disease patients requiring regular dialysis treatments
- →Hospital consumables (IV solutions, infusion systems) are mission-critical products with resilient demand regardless of economic conditions
- →Hillrom integration added patient monitoring and hospital bed systems, expanding Baxter's hospital infrastructure presence
Risks to watch — ABT
- →Dexcom competition in CGM and potential Apple Watch blood glucose monitoring integration could disrupt FreeStyle Libre's market position
- →Nutrition segment (infant formula, adult nutrition) can face margin and recall risks — 2022 Similac recall was a significant reputational event
- →Post-COVID diagnostics normalization reduced rapid test revenue significantly, creating a headwind that took years to anniversarize
Risks to watch — BAX
- →Heavy Hillrom acquisition debt has constrained Baxter's financial flexibility and requires sustained free cash flow for deleveraging
- →IV solutions and hospital products face pricing pressure from large hospital GPO (group purchasing organization) contracts
- →Renal care home dialysis transition (peritoneal dialysis) vs in-center hemodialysis dynamics affect product mix and margin profiles
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