Does mid-cap Health Information Services company Teladoc Health have a sustainably profitable business model? By studying its gross margins and comparing them to its operating margins, we can gain insight into quality of its business. With gross margins at 68.0%, you might be telling yourself the Teladoc Health is profitable -- but there is more to the story.
Gross margins take into account only the cost of revenue, meaning the expenses directly related to each sale. So it's important to also look at operating margins, which take into account overhead costs. One way to look at it is that gross profit gives insight into Teladoc Health's market and the viability of its business model. Operating margins, on the other hand, show you how efficiently the company is implementing this business model.
| Date Reported | Revenue ($ MM) | Cost of Revenue ($ MM) | Gross Margins (%) | YoY Growth (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-12-31 | 2,033 | 650 | 68.01 | 5.82 |
| 2020-12-31 | 1,094 | 391 | 64.27 | -3.59 |
| 2019-12-31 | 553 | 184 | 66.66 | n/a |
| Date Reported | Total Revenue ($ MM) | Operating Expenses ($ MM) | Operating Margins (%) | YoY Growth (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-12-31 | 2,033 | 1,621 | -11.76 | 69.24 |
| 2020-12-31 | 1,094 | 1,121 | -38.23 | -186.58 |
| 2019-12-31 | 553 | 443 | -13.34 | n/a |
The table above tells us that, on average, Teladoc Health has not been profitable over the last four years, which should be a warning sign to prospective investors. Indeed, the company's operating margins are sinking at rate of -58.7%
