CNC vs. MDLN: Centene vs. Medline Stock Comparison

Company Profile

Centene (CNC) and Medline (MDLN) both fall under the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group, but CNC is classified in Health Care Providers & Services while MDLN is classified in Health Care Equipment & Supplies.

Centene (CNC) has been public since December 13, 2001, giving it decades of market history across multiple cycles, while Medline (MDLN) listed only on December 17, 2025 and lacks comparable through-cycle data.

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

Trailing Returns

Calendar-Year Returns

Performance Metrics

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

Return Distribution

Risk Metrics

Medline (MDLN) reports a negative beta of -0.93, suggesting inverse market sensitivity over the measurement window. That is uncommon for ordinary equities and can reflect commodity-linked or hedge-like exposure, but it can also come from statistical noise. Centene (CNC) has a non-negative beta of 1.07.

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Both CNC and MDLN need 1-year volatility and 1-year return to plot risk-return positioning.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Profitability

Both Centene (CNC) at 6.74% and Medline (MDLN) at 4.85% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Both Centene (CNC) at 0.81% and Medline (MDLN) at 1.85% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

Both Centene (CNC) at 0.74% and Medline (MDLN) at 5.22% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

Profitability Metrics

Growth

Only one side can be read here: Centene (CNC) reports revenue growth of 19.44%, ranked against its industry; Medline (MDLN) has no revenue growth figure this period.

Medline (MDLN) at 117.38% sits above its peer range for EPS growth; Centene (CNC) at -314.42% sits below its range, putting their earnings trajectories at opposite ends.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

Medline (MDLN) at 4.04 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Centene (CNC) at 1.16 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

Both Centene (CNC) at 0.70 and Medline (MDLN) at 0.65 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

Neither Centene (CNC) nor Medline (MDLN) pays a dividend this period — they may reinvest, use buybacks, or simply not return cash through dividends.

Neither Centene (CNC) nor Medline (MDLN) pays a dividend this period — they may reinvest, use buybacks, or simply not return cash through dividends.

Dividend Metrics

Valuation

Centene (CNC) at 23.97 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Medline (MDLN) at 90.09 sits above its peer range — an unusually expensive price for MDLN’s trailing earnings.

Centene (CNC) at 0.19 sits in the cheaper P/S ratio quartile while Medline (MDLN) at 1.70 prices around its industry’s middle — CNC costs less per dollar of sales, though read it alongside growth and margins.

Centene (CNC) at 1.55 sits in the lower P/B ratio quartile against book while Medline (MDLN) at 2.95 is valued near its industry’s middle — CNC is cheaper on assets, though weigh it against ROE and asset quality.

Valuation Metrics