Privia Health Group (NASDAQ:PRVA) versus Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Critical Review

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) and Privia Health Group (NASDAQ:PRVA) are both healthcare companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Elevance Health and Privia Health Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Elevance Health	2.47%	14.64%	5.22%
Privia Health Group	1.19%	3.52%	2.00%

Risk & Volatility

Elevance Health has a beta of 0.69, suggesting that its share price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Privia Health Group has a beta of 0.87, suggesting that its share price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

89.2% of Elevance Health shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.5% of Privia Health Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Elevance Health shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.7% of Privia Health Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Elevance Health and Privia Health Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Elevance Health	0	8	15	0	2.65
Privia Health Group	0	3	11	0	2.79

Elevance Health currently has a consensus price target of $440.90, indicating a potential upside of 6.40%. Privia Health Group has a consensus price target of $31.00, indicating a potential upside of 54.31%. Given Privia Health Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Privia Health Group is more favorable than Elevance Health.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Elevance Health and Privia Health Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Elevance Health	$199.12 billion	0.45	$5.66 billion	$22.50	18.42
Privia Health Group	$2.36 billion	1.09	$22.92 million	$0.21	95.67

Elevance Health has higher revenue and earnings than Privia Health Group. Elevance Health is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Privia Health Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

About Elevance Health

Elevance Health, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a health benefits company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Health Benefits, CarelonRx, Carelon Services, and Corporate & Other. It offers a variety of health plans and services to program members; health products; an array of fee-based administrative managed care services; and specialty and other insurance products and services, such as stop loss, dental, vision, life, disability, and supplemental health insurance benefits. The company operates in the pharmacy services business; and markets and offers pharmacy services, including pharmacy benefit management, as well as home delivery and specialty pharmacies, claims adjudication, formulary management, pharmacy networks, rebate administration, a prescription drug database, and member services. In addition, it provides healthcare-related services and capabilities, including utilization management, behavioral health, integrated care delivery, palliative care, payment integrity services, subrogation services, and health and wellness programs, as well as services related to data management, information technology, and business operations. Further, the company is involved in the National Government Services business. The company provides its services under the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Wellpoint, and Carelon brand names. The company was formerly known as Anthem, Inc. and changed its name to Elevance Health, Inc. in June 2022. Elevance Health, Inc. was incorporated in 2001 and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.

About Privia Health Group

Privia Health Group, Inc. operates as a national physician-enablement company in the United States. The company collaborates with medical groups, health plans, and health systems to optimize physician practices, enhance patient experiences, and reward doctors for delivering care in-person and virtual settings. It offers technology and population health tools to enhance independent providers' workflows; management services organization that enable providers to focus on their patients by reducing administrative work; single-TIN medical group that facilitates payer negotiation, clinical integration and alignment of financial incentives; accountable care organization, which engage patients, reduce inappropriate utilization, and enhance coordination and patient quality metrics to drive value-based care; and network for purchasers and payers that enable providers to connect with new patient populations and create custom contracts. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.