ACLS vs AMAT vs MKSI Stock Comparison

Axcelis Technologies, Applied Materials and Mks Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ACLS Axcelis Technologies Inc
$112.02 -13.0% 1M +34.7% 1Y
Market cap
$3.46B
P/E
37.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$866.07M
Div. yield
–
Semiconductor Equipment Technology
AMAT Applied Materials Inc /De
$421.66 -17.6% 1M +78.9% 1Y
Market cap
$334.63B
P/E
36.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$30.84B
Div. yield
0.47%
Semiconductor Equipment Technology
9 wins
MKSI Mks Inc
$216.17 -18.7% 1M +52.9% 1Y
Market cap
$14.61B
P/E
33.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$4.35B
Div. yield
0.45%
Semiconductor Equipment Technology
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Applied Materials leads on 9 of the 12 questions below (Applied Materials 9, Mks 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionACLSAMATMKSILeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $3.46B $334.63B $14.61B AMAT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 37.2x 36.1x 33.2x MKSI
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 26.5x 31.2x 16.0x MKSI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -3.3% +7.8% +16.3% MKSI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 10.7% 30.1% 10.1% AMAT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 25.3% 8.9% AMAT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — -0.3x 3.2x AMAT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — 0.47% 0.45% AMAT
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +34.7% +78.9% +52.9% AMAT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +15.3%/yr +25.3%/yr +7.6%/yr AMAT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 69.7% 60.6% 61.8% AMAT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 55/100 56/100 55/100 AMAT

Percentile Scorecard

ACLSAMATMKSI

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisACLSAMATMKSI
Valuation 72 #27 of 94 50 #48 of 94 76 #23 of 94
Growth 4 #88 of 92 45 #51 of 92 73 #26 of 92
Profitability 45 #49 of 88 89 #11 of 88 62 #34 of 88
Financial Health 64 #35 of 96 48 #50 of 96 1 #95 of 96
Shareholder Returns 87 #10 of 72 49 #37 of 72 63 #27 of 72
Overall 55 56 55
  • ACLS ranked among 103 companies in Semiconductors
  • AMAT ranked among 103 companies in Semiconductors
  • MKSI ranked among 103 companies in Semiconductors

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodACLSAMATMKSISPY
1 month -13.0%-17.6%-18.7% +0.7%
3 months -10.5%-16.0%-26.3% +3.7%
6 months -19.5%+6.9%-23.8% +7.1%
Year to date +39.4%+64.1%+35.3% +12.8%
1 year +34.7%+78.9%+52.9% +11.9%
3 years -11.3%+221.8%+230.9% +85.2%
3 years, per year -3.9%+47.7%+49.1% +22.8%
5 years +103.9%+208.6%+44.1% +67.6%
5 years, per year +15.3%+25.3%+7.6% +10.9%
10 years +742.3%+1,371.2%+335.4% +262.0%
10 years, per year +23.8%+30.9%+15.9% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureACLSAMATMKSISPY
Volatility, 1Y 69.7%60.6%61.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 71.3%62.4%65.8% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.812.782.82 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.501.300.86 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -78.8%-55.4%-67.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -41.5%-41.7%-51.4% -1.2%
52-week high $191.60$723.00$444.80 $779.14
52-week low $74.12$220.23$137.20 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleACLSAMATMKSI
P/E now vs peer median 37.2xmedian 46.4x 36.1xmedian 46.4x 33.2xmedian 46.4x
P/S now vs peer median 4.0xmedian 7.8x 10.9xmedian 7.8x 3.4xmedian 7.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 28.6xmedian 27.5x 34.3xmedian 27.5x 17.2xmedian 27.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 52.8xmedian 40.1x 59.5xmedian 40.1x 32.1xmedian 40.1x
P/B now vs peer median 3.2xmedian 4.7x 13.1xmedian 4.7x 4.9xmedian 4.7x
PEG now vs peer median -1.71median 2.10 2.43median 2.10 1.08median 2.10

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsACLSAMATMKSI
Revenue $866.07M $30.84B $4.35B
Gross profit $372.51M $15.23B $2.04B
Operating income $89.42M $9.14B $681.00M
Net income $92.79M $9.27B $439.00M
Free cash flow $65.55M $5.62B $455.00M
R&D $112.26M $3.97B $310.00M
EPS (diluted) $2.98 $11.58 $6.05
Cash & equivalents $155.00M $7.04B $611.00M
Total debt – $26.11B $3.94B
Shares (diluted) 31.13M 800.00M 72.70M
Enterprise value $1.87B $300.07B $12.06B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricACLSAMATMKSI
P/E 37.2x 36.1x 33.2x
P/FCF 52.8x 59.5x 32.1x
P/Operating cash flow 45.9x 39.9x 23.0x
P/S 4.0x 10.9x 3.4x
P/B 3.2x 13.1x 4.9x
P/Tangible book 3.2x 13.2x 15.0x
EV/EBITDA 28.6x 34.3x 17.2x
EV/EBIT 34.2x 36.3x 26.4x
EV/Revenue 3.5x 10.8x 4.1x
EV/FCF 46.6x 59.0x 39.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 40.6x 39.5x 28.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -1.71 2.43 1.08

Growth

14 metrics
MetricACLSAMATMKSI
Revenue growth (1Y) -3.3% 7.8% 16.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -5.4% 5.1% 4.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -7.4% 9.8% 15.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -5.2% 7.3% 6.7%
Operating income growth (1Y) -44.0% 6.0% 33.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -26.4% 6.0% 35.4%
Net income growth (1Y) -41.5% 35.6% 64.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -23.4% 12.9% 31.0%
EPS growth (1Y) -40.0% 36.0% 52.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -21.8% 14.9% 30.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -45.5% 9.0% -1.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -33.3% 1.6% 20.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -46.5% -3.4% -13.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -35.2% -7.0% 22.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricACLSAMATMKSI
Gross margin 43.0% 49.4% 47.0%
EBITDA margin 12.4% 31.4% 24.0%
Operating margin 10.3% 29.6% 15.7%
Pretax margin 12.3% 34.8% 11.2%
Net margin 10.7% 30.1% 10.1%
FCF margin 7.6% 18.2% 10.5%
Operating cash flow margin 8.7% 27.2% 14.6%
Return on equity 8.8% 37.4% 15.2%
Return on assets 6.7% 22.1% 5.0%
Return on invested capital – 25.3% 8.9%
Return on capital employed 7.6% 29.0% 10.6%
Asset turnover 0.6x 0.7x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 0.8x 0.9x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 2.5% 2.3% 1.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricACLSAMATMKSI
Debt / assets – 15.0% 44.1%
Debt / equity – 0.3x 1.3x
Net debt / EBITDA – -0.3x 3.2x
Debt / FCF – 1.2x 8.7x
Liabilities / assets 23.1% 41.1% 66.6%
Equity / assets 76.9% 58.9% 33.4%
Interest coverage 17.2x 33.0x 3.7x
Current ratio 4.9x 2.4x 1.1x
Quick ratio 2.8x 1.6x 0.6x
Cash ratio 2.0x 0.9x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 8.52 15.00 2.40

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricACLSAMATMKSI
Dividend yield – 0.5% 0.4%
Net buyback yield 1.6% 0.6% –
Shareholder yield 1.6% 1.0% 0.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 14.4%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 13.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 6.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 3.4%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusACLSAMATMKSI
Forward P/E 26.5xFY2026 31.2xFY2026 16.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $4.22FY2026 $13.50FY2026 $13.48FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -13.5%FY2026 +43.3%FY2026 +71.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +18.7% +32.7% +34.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $920.94MFY2026 $32.74BFY2026 $5.43BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +9.8%FY2026 +15.4%FY2026 +38.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +0.6% +38.2% +8.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersACLSAMATMKSI
Held by institutions 100.0% 83.6% 100.0%
Institutions holding 442 3,507 776
Change in shares held, QoQ -5.0% +6.0% +2.8%
Institutions buying 234 1,790 455
Institutions selling 143 1,350 253
Buyers to sellers 1.64 1.33 1.80

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ACLSAMATMKSI
ACLS 1.00 0.69 0.71
AMAT 0.69 1.00 0.82
MKSI 0.71 0.82 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ACLS, AMAT and MKSI?

Applied Materials (AMAT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) $3.46B, Applied Materials (AMAT) $334.63B, Mks (MKSI) $14.61B.

Which stock is cheaper, ACLS, AMAT and MKSI?

Mks (MKSI) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 37.2x, Applied Materials (AMAT) 36.1x, Mks (MKSI) 33.2x). On next year's consensus earnings, Mks (MKSI) is cheapest (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 26.5x, Applied Materials (AMAT) 31.2x, Mks (MKSI) 16.0x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Mks (MKSI) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) -3.3%, Applied Materials (AMAT) +7.8%, Mks (MKSI) +16.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Applied Materials (AMAT) has the highest net margin (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 10.7%, Applied Materials (AMAT) 30.1%, Mks (MKSI) 10.1%). On return on invested capital, Applied Materials (AMAT) leads (Applied Materials (AMAT) 25.3%, Mks (MKSI) 8.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Applied Materials (AMAT) returned the most: Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) +34.7%, Applied Materials (AMAT) +78.9%, Mks (MKSI) +52.9%. Over five years, Applied Materials (AMAT) compounded fastest (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) +15.3%/yr, Applied Materials (AMAT) +25.3%/yr, Mks (MKSI) +7.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Applied Materials (AMAT) has the highest dividend yield: Applied Materials (AMAT) 0.47%, Mks (MKSI) 0.45%. Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Applied Materials (AMAT) has been the steadiest (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 69.7%, Applied Materials (AMAT) 60.6%, Mks (MKSI) 61.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ACLS, AMAT and MKSI?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Applied Materials (AMAT) leads on 9. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.