Educational article

Brazilian healthcare stocks: P/E, P/B, ROE, yield

Learn how FundamentalRadar groups healthcare companies by regulator labels, shows P/E, P/B, ROE, dividend yields, market caps, medians, and data limits.

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Brazilian Healthcare Stocks: Understanding the FundamentalRadar Sector Page

Healthcare stocks in Brazil trade on B3 under a specific classification system that groups companies by their primary business activity. The FundamentalRadar sector page consolidates these companies and displays valuation metrics, profitability ratios, and dividend characteristics. This guide explains how the platform presents the data and what each indicator means.

TL;DR

  • Grouped labels: B3 classifies healthcare across multiple regulator labels like "Serv.Méd.Hospit. Análises e Diagnósticos" and "Medicamentos e Outros Produtos"; FundamentalRadar groups them under "Saúde" for analysis.
  • Medians vs. individual: The page shows median P/E, P/B, ROE and dividend yield values calculated over one share class per company—the most liquid one—rather than simple averages.
  • Data freshness and limits: Figures are computed on request from the latest screener snapshot; catch-all buckets like "Outros" are marked separately because they name no industry.

How B3 Classifies Healthcare Companies

The Brazilian stock exchange (B3) assigns companies to sectors using a hierarchical classification. Companies are placed in Saúde (Healthcare) as the primary sector, with subsector labels such as:

Subsector LabelMeaning
Serv.Méd.Hospit. Análises e DiagnósticosMedical services, hospitals, clinical labs, imaging and diagnostic medicine Source
Medicamentos e Outros ProdutosPharmaceuticals and other healthcare products
Farmacêutico e HigienePharmaceutical and hygiene products

A company's classification depends on the products or services that contribute most to its revenue. This is stated in its B3 profile. For example, DASA3 (Dasa) is classified under "Serv.Méd.Hospit. Análises e Diagnósticos" because its principal activity is medical diagnostics, hospitals and oncology Source.

The full healthcare sector page at FundamentalRadar's saúde sector groups this regulator classification and computes the medians described below.

Key Metrics on the FundamentalRadar Healthcare Page

The sector page displays several core financial metrics that analysts use to compare companies within the healthcare sector:

Price-to-Earnings Ratio (P/E)

P/E, or P/L (Preço sobre Lucro) in Brazil, measures how much investors pay for each unit of a company's earnings Source.

P/E=Share priceEarnings per share (EPS/LPA)\text{P/E} = \frac{\text{Share price}}{\text{Earnings per share (EPS/LPA)}}

A high P/E may signal expected growth or high-quality earnings. A low P/E could indicate undervaluation or expected weakness. Negative earnings result in a meaningless P/E ratio.

Price-to-Book Ratio (P/B)

P/B or P/VP (Preço sobre Valor Patrimonial) compares market price to book value—the accounting value of shareholders' equity Source.

P/B=Market price per shareBook value per share\text{P/B} = \frac{\text{Market price per share}}{\text{Book value per share}}

A P/B above 1.0x means the market values the company above its accounting book value; below 1.0x suggests the opposite. This ratio is most useful for asset-heavy businesses like hospitals or pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Return on Equity (ROE)

ROE (Return on Equity) measures how much profit a company generates relative to shareholders' equity Source.

ROE=Lucro LıˊquidoPatrimoˆnio Lıˊquido×100\text{ROE} = \frac{\text{Lucro Líquido}}{\text{Patrimônio Líquido}} \times 100

A higher ROE indicates better efficiency at turning equity into profit, but debt can inflate the ratio. Analysts often use the average equity over two periods for a more accurate measure.

Dividend Yield

DY (Dividend Yield) shows the annual distribution per share relative to the share price Source.

DY(%)=proventos por ac¸a˜o no perıˊodoprec¸o da ac¸a˜o×100\text{DY}(\%) = \frac{\text{proventos por ação no período}}{\text{preço da ação}} \times 100

In Brazil, dividends and JCP (Juros sobre Capital Próprio) both count as distributions. Companies may be required to distribute a portion of profits under corporate law.

Grouped Regulator Labels and Medians

FundamentalRadar groups multiple B3 labels under the umbrella sector heading Saúde. The page shows medians per subsector when more than one label exists. This approach matters because a single median across all healthcare companies would obscure meaningful differences.

The median P/E, P/B, ROE and dividend yield values shown are calculated over one share class per company—the most liquid one. This means each company contributes exactly one data point to the median calculation, eliminating the distortion that would occur if multiple share classes were counted separately.

For example, if "Serv.Méd.Hospit. Análises e Diagnósticos" contains five companies:

MetricMedian Value
Median P/EComputed from the middle P/E value when sorted
Median P/BComputed from the middle P/B value when sorted
Median ROEComputed from the middle ROE value when sorted
Median dividend yieldCalculated considering only paying companies
CompanyTickerP/EP/BROEDividend Yield
DasaDASA318.452.1214.8%3.50%
Raia DrogasilRADL321.301.8512.3%4.80%
Panvel (Dimed)PNVL324.122.6518.2%5.20%
Viveo (CM Hospitalar)VVEO331.503.108.9%2.10%
Pague MenosPGMN319.802.0515.4%6.10%
Source—DASA3RADL3PNVL3VVEO3

Note: Values are illustrative examples, not current market data.

Market Capitalization and Company Count

The sector page reports the number of listed stocks in healthcare and the estimated market caps of leading companies. Market capitalization represents the total value of a company's outstanding shares.

Market Cap=Share price×Shares outstanding\text{Market Cap} = \text{Share price} \times \text{Shares outstanding}

For publicly listed Brazilian companies, market cap can be found in the B3 company profile Source.

Ranking Leaders by ROE

The page ranks healthcare companies by ROE, showing the ticker, name, price, P/E, ROE, dividend yield and market cap. Leaders are sorted from highest to lowest ROE. This ranking helps identify companies generating the highest return on shareholder equity within the sector.

The sector also shows cover­age metrics, which indicate what proportion of the entire stock universe sits in named industries versus generic buckets like "Outros" or "Serviços Diversos". These catch-all sectors name no specific industry and are reported separately to avoid inflating classification statistics.

Missing Data and Calculation Limits

How Zero Values Are Treated

FundamentalRadar follows a specific rule for missing data: a P/E or P/B of exactly 0.00 is treated as missing, not as a valid ratio. This practice prevents distorted medians when a company reports zero earnings or book value.

Why Medians Matter

Medians are preferred over simple averages because they are not skewed by extreme values. In a sector with a few very high P/E companies, the average would be higher than most individual companies’ ratios. The median splits the distribution in half, giving a more representative central value.

Payers-Only for Dividend Yield

The dividend yield median counts payers only—companies that actually distribute dividends. A zero dividend yield for a non-payer is not included in the median calculation. This distinction ensures the median reflects the actual distribution behavior of companies that pay dividends.

ScenarioTreatment
Company pays R$0.00 dividendZero is the actual measurement; included in company yield
No dividend paidZero would mean no distribution; excluded from median
Non-payerExcluded from "payers only" median

Data Freshness and Sources

The FundamentalRadar sector page is generated from the latest screener snapshot available when the page loads. Two timestamps appear:

  1. Requested: When the page asked for the data
  2. Generated at: When the screener snapshot was created

The data reflects the most recent publicly available filings. Brazilian companies file quarterly reports (ITR) within 45 days of quarter-end and annual statements within four months Source.

Analysis vs. Investment Advice

The FundamentalRadar sector page provides factual data analysis only. It displays metrics, rankings and coverage statistics as published by B3 and the underlying data providers. It does not constitute investment advice. Users should:

  • Compare metrics within the same sector for context
  • Review each company's latest financial statements
  • Consider their own risk tolerance and investment goals
  • Consult a qualified financial professional before making decisions

Common Errors and Fixes

ErrorCauseFixSource
No leaders shownNo classified assets returned for healthCheck if sector labels match B3 classificationSector API
Zero ratio displayedMissing denominator (negative earnings, negative equity)Review financial statements for contextB3 P/E Guide
Low coverage %Catch-all buckets labeled "Outros"Examine subgroup breakdown for actual sectorsSector View
P/B below 1.0xBook value exceeds market valueCould signal distress or undervaluationP/B Analysis

FAQ

Q: Why does the healthcare sector page show multiple subsector labels?

A: B3 classifies healthcare companies across several regulatory labels based on their primary business activity. FundamentalRadar groups these under "Saúde" and shows medians per subsector when needed for clarity.

Q: What is the difference between Median P/E and Average P/E?

A: The median is the middle value when all ratios are sorted. The average sums all values and divides by count. Median is less affected by outlier companies.

Q: Why are some companies excluded from the dividend yield median?

A: The dividend yield median counts "payers only." Companies that do not pay dividends are excluded because a zero yield would distort the median.

Q: Can I download the sector data?

A: Yes. Use the Export analysis button to download a CSV file with all sector metrics, leaders and classifications.

Q: How often is the sector data updated?

A: The data refreshes when the page loads from the latest screener snapshot. Individual company filings follow B3's quarterly (45 days post-quarter) and annual (4 months post-year) schedules.

Q: What does "coverage" mean in sector analysis?

A: Coverage measures what share of all B3-listed companies fall into named industry sectors. Catch-all labels like "Outros" are not counted as real classifications.

Q: Why is P/B sometimes more useful than P/E?

A: P/B better reflects asset-heavy businesses where book value is meaningful. For asset-light companies like software firms, P/B may not capture true value.

Sources

FundamentalRadar · educational information, not investment advice.