BAX vs. HUM: Baxter vs. Humana Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM) both fall under the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group, but BAX is classified in Health Care Equipment & Supplies while HUM is classified in Health Care Providers & Services.

Company profile comparison for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Profile Item	BAX	HUM
Name	Baxter International Inc.	Humana Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Health Care	Health Care
GICS Industry Group	Health Care Equipment & Services	Health Care Equipment & Services
GICS Industry	Health Care Equipment & Supplies	Health Care Providers & Services
GICS Sub-Industry	Health Care Equipment	Managed Health Care
Market Capitalization	13.34 billion USD	52.09 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	October 27, 1981	December 31, 1981
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

BAX

HUM

GSPC

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
Total Return (1Y)	45.72%	75.62%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	-5.53%	-2.91%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	-17.96%	0.40%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

BAX

HUM

GSPC

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	42.31%	45.95%
Beta (5Y)	0.62	0.62
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-80.61%	-69.92%
Avg. Volume (3M)	6.53M	1.26M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

BAX and HUM are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.98	1.55
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.42	2.28

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Baxter (BAX) reports a negative ROE of -9.04%; negative ROE can reflect losses or negative shareholders’ equity, so it is harder to read as capital efficiency. Meanwhile Humana (HUM) reports 6.74%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

-9.04%

Max: 47.61%
Q3: 14.36%
Median: 5.45%
BAX: -9.04%
Q1: -10.67%
Min: -47.01%

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

6.74%

Max: 47.61%
Q3: 14.36%
HUM: 6.74%
Median: 5.45%
Q1: -10.67%
Min: -47.01%

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their ROE against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Baxter (BAX) reports a negative net margin of -6.23%, usually indicating a net loss over the period. Meanwhile Humana (HUM) reports 0.81%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

-6.23%

Max: 29.35%
Q3: 9.33%
Median: 2.18%
BAX: -6.23%
Q1: -6.29%
Min: -28.46%

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.81%

Max: 29.35%
Q3: 9.33%
Median: 2.18%
HUM: 0.81%
Q1: -6.29%
Min: -28.46%

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their net margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Baxter (BAX) at 9.88% and Humana (HUM) at 0.24% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

9.88%

Max: 35.43%
Q3: 14.14%
BAX: 9.88%
Median: 6.81%
Q1: -0.28%
Min: -16.29%

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.24%

Max: 35.43%
Q3: 14.14%
Median: 6.81%
HUM: 0.24%
Q1: -0.28%
Min: -16.29%

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their operating margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
ROE (TTM)	-9.04%	6.74%
ROA (TTM)	2.71%	3.24%
Net Margin (TTM)	-6.23%	0.81%
Operating Margin (TTM)	9.88%	0.24%
Gross Margin (TTM)	33.37%	13.01%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Baxter (BAX) at 5.72% and Humana (HUM) at 10.11% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Humana (HUM) reports EPS growth of -1.40%, ranked against its industry; Baxter (BAX) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
Revenue Growth (YoY)	5.72%	10.11%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	3.79%	11.77%
EPS Growth (YoY)	--	-1.40%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	-23.62%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Baxter (BAX) at 1.79 and Humana (HUM) at 1.65 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.79

Max: 7.59
Q3: 4.00
Median: 1.98
BAX: 1.79
Q1: 1.37
Min: 0.30

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.65

Max: 7.59
Q3: 4.00
Median: 1.98
HUM: 1.65
Q1: 1.37
Min: 0.30

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their current ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Humana (HUM) at 0.68 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while Baxter (BAX) at 1.36 uses more debt funding than most peers.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.36

Max: 1.88
BAX: 1.36
Q3: 0.91
Median: 0.58
Q1: 0.16
Min: 0.00

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.68

Max: 1.88
Q3: 0.91
HUM: 0.68
Median: 0.58
Q1: 0.16
Min: 0.00

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.79	1.65
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.36	0.68
Net Debt / EBITDA	3.73	-4.10

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Baxter (BAX) at 0.16% and Humana (HUM) at 0.21% yield above their industries’ entire benchmark ranges — high enough that dividend safety, not income, becomes the first question.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.16%

BAX: 0.16%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.21%

HUM: 0.21%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Baxter (BAX) reports payout ratio above 100% at 154.67%, meaning dividends exceeded current-period earnings and sustainability needs extra context. Meanwhile Humana (HUM) reports 34.54%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

154.67%

BAX: 154.67%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

34.54%

HUM: 34.54%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.16%	0.21%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	154.67%	34.54%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: Humana (HUM) trades at 42.32 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while Baxter (BAX) has no P/E ratio this period.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

Max: 80.41
Q3: 47.62
Median: 29.93
Q1: 21.19
Min: 4.21
BAX: --

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

42.32

Max: 80.41
Q3: 47.62
HUM: 42.32
Median: 29.93
Q1: 21.19
Min: 4.21

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): BAX does not report P/E ratio, so it has no value marker; HUM is benchmarked against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Humana (HUM) at 0.34 sits in the cheaper P/S ratio quartile while Baxter (BAX) at 1.15 prices around its industry’s middle — HUM costs less per dollar of sales, though read it alongside growth and margins.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.15

Max: 8.80
Q3: 4.32
Median: 2.13
BAX: 1.15
Q1: 1.10
Min: 0.03

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.34

Max: 8.80
Q3: 4.32
Median: 2.13
Q1: 1.10
HUM: 0.34
Min: 0.03

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Baxter (BAX) at 2.05 and Humana (HUM) at 2.77 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

BAX

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

2.05

Max: 11.68
Q3: 6.12
Median: 3.00
BAX: 2.05
Q1: 1.73
Min: -1.31

HUM

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

2.77

Max: 11.68
Q3: 6.12
Median: 3.00
HUM: 2.77
Q1: 1.73
Min: -1.31

Baxter (BAX) vs. Humana (HUM): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Baxter (BAX) and Humana (HUM)
Metric	BAX	HUM
P/E Ratio (TTM)	--	42.32
P/S Ratio (TTM)	1.15	0.34
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.05	2.77
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	9.16%	6.27%