CVS vs. STE: CVS Health vs. STERIS Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE) 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

CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE) both fall under the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group, but CVS is classified in Health Care Providers & Services while STE is classified in Health Care Equipment & Supplies.

Company profile comparison for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Profile Item	CVS	STE
Name	CVS Health Corporation Common Stock	STERIS plc
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 Providers & Services	Health Care Equipment & Supplies
GICS Sub-Industry	Health Care Services	Health Care Equipment
Market Capitalization	107.28 billion USD	24.50 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	February 21, 1973	June 1, 1992
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CVS

STE

GSPC

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE), 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 CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
Total Return (1Y)	11.41%	-1.85%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	12.73%	9.57%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	1.70%	3.26%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CVS

STE

GSPC

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE), 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 CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	34.14%	26.39%
Beta (5Y)	0.60	0.81
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-56.79%	-36.18%
Avg. Volume (3M)	8.60M	694.02K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CVS and STE 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 CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.21	-0.23
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.28	-0.34

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both CVS Health (CVS) at 14.36% and STERIS (STE) at 11.61% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

14.36%

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

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

11.61%

Max: 47.61%
Q3: 14.36%
STE: 11.61%
Median: 5.45%
Q1: -10.67%
Min: -47.01%

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their ROE against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

STERIS (STE) at 13.41% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of CVS Health (CVS) at 2.64%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

2.64%

Max: 29.35%
Q3: 9.33%
CVS: 2.64%
Median: 2.18%
Q1: -6.29%
Min: -28.46%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

13.41%

Max: 29.35%
STE: 13.41%
Q3: 9.33%
Median: 2.18%
Q1: -6.29%
Min: -28.46%

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their net margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

STERIS (STE) at 19.18% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of CVS Health (CVS) at 2.72%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

2.72%

Max: 35.43%
Q3: 14.14%
Median: 6.81%
CVS: 2.72%
Q1: -0.28%
Min: -16.29%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

19.18%

Max: 35.43%
STE: 19.18%
Q3: 14.14%
Median: 6.81%
Q1: -0.28%
Min: -16.29%

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their operating margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
ROE (TTM)	14.36%	11.61%
ROA (TTM)	3.11%	7.00%
Net Margin (TTM)	2.64%	13.41%
Operating Margin (TTM)	2.72%	19.18%
Gross Margin (TTM)	13.72%	44.30%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both CVS Health (CVS) at 7.85% and STERIS (STE) at 8.73% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

STERIS (STE) at 27.90% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while CVS Health (CVS) at -62.02% is in the bottom quartile, showing a clear gap in earnings momentum.

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
Revenue Growth (YoY)	7.85%	8.73%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	7.63%	9.38%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-62.02%	27.90%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	-24.73%	94.97%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

STERIS (STE) at 2.05 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while CVS Health (CVS) at 0.85 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for CVS.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.85

Max: 7.59
Q3: 4.00
Median: 1.98
Q1: 1.37
CVS: 0.85
Min: 0.30

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

2.05

Max: 7.59
Q3: 4.00
STE: 2.05
Median: 1.98
Q1: 1.37
Min: 0.30

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their current ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

STERIS (STE) at 0.28 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while CVS Health (CVS) at 0.93 uses more debt funding than most peers.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.93

Max: 1.88
CVS: 0.93
Q3: 0.91
Median: 0.58
Q1: 0.16
Min: 0.00

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.28

Max: 1.88
Q3: 0.91
Median: 0.58
STE: 0.28
Q1: 0.16
Min: 0.00

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.85	2.05
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.93	0.28
Net Debt / EBITDA	3.49	0.91

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both CVS Health (CVS) at 3.27% and STERIS (STE) at 1.02% yield above their industries’ entire benchmark ranges — high enough that dividend safety, not income, becomes the first question.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

3.27%

CVS: 3.27%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.02%

STE: 1.02%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both CVS Health (CVS) at 30.89% and STERIS (STE) at 30.61% pay out more of their earnings than any of their industry peers — the thinnest cover in their groups, so dividend headroom deserves attention.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

30.89%

CVS: 30.89%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

30.61%

STE: 30.61%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
Dividend Yield (TTM)	3.27%	1.02%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	30.89%	30.61%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

CVS Health (CVS) at 9.74 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while STERIS (STE) at 29.93 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for CVS, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

9.74

Max: 80.41
Q3: 47.62
Median: 29.93
Q1: 21.19
CVS: 9.74
Min: 4.21

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

29.93

Max: 80.41
Q3: 47.62
STE: 29.93
Median: 29.93
Q1: 21.19
Min: 4.21

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

CVS Health (CVS) at 0.26 sits in the cheaper P/S ratio quartile while STERIS (STE) at 3.97 prices around its industry’s middle — CVS costs less per dollar of sales, though read it alongside growth and margins.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.26

Max: 8.80
Q3: 4.32
Median: 2.13
Q1: 1.10
CVS: 0.26
Min: 0.03

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

3.97

Max: 8.80
Q3: 4.32
STE: 3.97
Median: 2.13
Q1: 1.10
Min: 0.03

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

CVS Health (CVS) at 1.33 sits in the lower P/B ratio quartile against book while STERIS (STE) at 3.38 is valued near its industry’s middle — CVS is cheaper on assets, though weigh it against ROE and asset quality.

CVS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.33

Max: 11.68
Q3: 6.12
Median: 3.00
Q1: 1.73
CVS: 1.33
Min: -1.31

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

3.38

Max: 11.68
Q3: 6.12
STE: 3.38
Median: 3.00
Q1: 1.73
Min: -1.31

CVS Health (CVS) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for CVS Health (CVS) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	CVS	STE
P/E Ratio (TTM)	9.74	29.93
P/S Ratio (TTM)	0.26	3.97
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	1.33	3.38
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	11.02%	3.36%