ACLS vs ASML vs KLAC Stock Comparison

Axcelis Technologies, Asml Holding and Kla Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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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
2 wins
ASML Asml Holding Nv
$1,675.70 -8.7% 1M +56.5% 1Y
Market cap
$645.84B
P/E
59.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$37.62B
Div. yield
0.56%
Semiconductor Equipment Technology
5 wins
KLAC Kla Corp
$167.43 -14.8% 1M +35.5% 1Y
Market cap
$218.15B
P/E
41.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$14.51B
Div. yield
0.28%
Semiconductor Equipment Technology
3 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Asml Holding leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Asml Holding 5, Kla 3, Axcelis Technologies 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionACLSASMLKLACLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $3.46B $645.84B $218.15B ASML
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 37.2x 59.5x 41.6x ACLS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 26.5x 35.2x 29.5x ACLS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -3.3% +22.9% +15.8% ASML
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 10.7% 29.1% 36.2% KLAC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — — 43.4% –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — — 0.6x –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — 0.56% 0.28% ASML
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +34.7% +56.5% +35.5% ASML
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +15.3%/yr +15.6%/yr +35.1%/yr KLAC
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 69.7% 46.8% 61.7% ASML
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 55/100 45/100 59/100 KLAC

Percentile Scorecard

ACLSASMLKLAC

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

AxisACLSASMLKLAC
Valuation 72 #27 of 94 16 #79 of 94 39 #58 of 94
Growth 4 #88 of 92 79 #20 of 92 56 #41 of 92
Profitability 45 #49 of 88 79 #19 of 88 95 #5 of 88
Financial Health 64 #35 of 96 14 #83 of 96 20 #77 of 96
Shareholder Returns 87 #10 of 72 37 #46 of 72 83 #13 of 72
Overall 55 45 59
  • ACLS ranked among 103 companies in Semiconductors
  • ASML ranked among 103 companies in Semiconductors
  • KLAC ranked among 103 companies in Semiconductors

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodACLSASMLKLACSPY
1 month -13.0%-8.7%-14.8% +0.7%
3 months -10.5%+1.5%-7.2% +3.7%
6 months -19.5%+16.4%-4.3% +7.1%
Year to date +39.4%+56.6%+37.8% +12.8%
1 year +34.7%+56.5%+35.5% +11.9%
3 years -11.3%+184.6%+264.3% +85.2%
3 years, per year -3.9%+41.7%+53.9% +22.8%
5 years +103.9%+106.1%+349.2% +67.6%
5 years, per year +15.3%+15.6%+35.1% +10.9%
10 years +742.3%+1,488.9%+2,142.6% +262.0%
10 years, per year +23.8%+31.9%+36.5% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureACLSASMLKLACSPY
Volatility, 1Y 69.7%46.8%61.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 71.3%46.6%65.7% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.812.272.79 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.501.210.58 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -78.8%-56.9%-51.7% -25.4%
From 52-week high -41.5%-15.8%-44.5% -1.2%
52-week high $191.60$1,989.44$301.71 $779.14
52-week low $74.12$966.57$109.71 $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.

MultipleACLSASMLKLAC
P/E now vs peer median 37.2xmedian 46.4x 59.5xmedian 46.4x 41.6xmedian 46.4x
P/S now vs peer median 4.0xmedian 7.8x 17.2xmedian 7.8x 15.0xmedian 7.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 28.6xmedian 27.5x —median 27.5x 33.8xmedian 27.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 52.8xmedian 40.1x 51.6xmedian 40.1x 54.0xmedian 40.1x
P/B now vs peer median 3.2xmedian 4.7x 28.0xmedian 4.7x 33.4xmedian 4.7x
PEG now vs peer median -1.71median 2.10 2.46median 2.10 1.98median 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 monthsACLSASMLKLAC
Revenue $866.07M $37.62B $14.51B
Gross profit $372.51M $19.58B $8.92B
Operating income $89.42M – $6.19B
Net income $92.79M – $5.26B
Free cash flow $65.55M – $4.04B
R&D $112.26M – $1.57B
EPS (diluted) $2.98 $28.13 $4.01
Cash & equivalents $155.00M $15.17B $1.53B
Total debt – $5.16B $5.72B
Shares (diluted) 31.13M 388.90M 1.31B
Enterprise value $1.87B $601.53B $210.73B

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
MetricACLSASMLKLAC
P/E 37.2x 59.5x 41.6x
P/FCF 52.8x 51.6x 54.0x
P/Operating cash flow 45.9x – 48.3x
P/S 4.0x 17.2x 15.0x
P/B 3.2x 28.0x 33.4x
P/Tangible book 3.2x 28.8x 34.6x
EV/EBITDA 28.6x – 33.8x
EV/EBIT 34.2x – 35.9x
EV/Revenue 3.5x 16.9x 15.3x
EV/FCF 46.6x – 55.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 40.6x – 49.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -1.71 2.46 1.98

Growth

14 metrics
MetricACLSASMLKLAC
Revenue growth (1Y) -3.3% 22.9% 15.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -5.4% 19.4% 12.6%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -7.4% 24.9% 16.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -5.2% 20.6% 13.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) -44.0% – 18.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -26.4% – 17.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -41.5% – 24.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -23.4% – 19.2%
EPS growth (1Y) -40.0% 35.2% 25.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -21.8% 24.2% 21.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -45.5% – 6.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -33.3% – 8.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -46.5% – 4.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -35.2% – 7.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricACLSASMLKLAC
Gross margin 43.0% 52.0% 61.5%
EBITDA margin 12.4% – 45.4%
Operating margin 10.3% – 42.6%
Pretax margin 12.3% – 42.2%
Net margin 10.7% 29.1% 36.2%
FCF margin 7.6% – 27.8%
Operating cash flow margin 8.7% – 31.1%
Return on equity 8.8% – 81.7%
Return on assets 6.7% – 28.9%
Return on invested capital – – 43.4%
Return on capital employed 7.6% – 45.4%
Asset turnover 0.6x 0.7x 0.8x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 0.8x – 0.9x
Stock comp / revenue 2.5% – 2.2%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricACLSASMLKLAC
Debt / assets – 8.7% 31.1%
Debt / equity – 0.2x 0.9x
Net debt / EBITDA – – 0.6x
Debt / FCF – – 1.4x
Liabilities / assets 23.1% 61.2% 64.6%
Equity / assets 76.9% 38.8% 35.4%
Interest coverage 17.2x – 22.0x
Current ratio 4.9x 1.3x 2.8x
Quick ratio 2.8x 0.7x 1.0x
Cash ratio 2.0x 0.5x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 8.52 – 13.74

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricACLSASMLKLAC
Dividend yield – 0.6% 0.3%
Net buyback yield 1.6% – 1.2%
Shareholder yield 1.6% 0.6% 1.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 21.1%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 27.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 15.7%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 15.2%

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.

ConsensusACLSASMLKLAC
Forward P/E 26.5xFY2026 35.2xFY2026 29.5xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $4.22FY2026 $47.62FY2026 $5.67FY2027
EPS growth, next FY -13.5%FY2026 +61.2%FY2026 +50.8%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +18.7% +42.0% +16.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $920.94MFY2026 $47.18BFY2026 $19.18BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +9.8%FY2026 +20.9%FY2026 +41.2%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after +0.6% +42.9% +8.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersACLSASMLKLAC
Held by institutions 100.0% 19.8% 91.0%
Institutions holding 442 2,494 2,479
Change in shares held, QoQ -5.0% +8.0% +4.2%
Institutions buying 234 1,360 1,285
Institutions selling 143 783 983
Buyers to sellers 1.64 1.74 1.31

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.

ACLSASMLKLAC
ACLS 1.00 0.64 0.70
ASML 0.64 1.00 0.81
KLAC 0.70 0.81 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ACLS, ASML and KLAC?

Asml Holding (ASML) is the largest by market capitalisation: Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) $3.46B, Asml Holding (ASML) $645.84B, Kla (KLAC) $218.15B.

Which stock is cheaper, ACLS, ASML and KLAC?

Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 37.2x, Asml Holding (ASML) 59.5x, Kla (KLAC) 41.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) is cheapest (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 26.5x, Asml Holding (ASML) 35.2x, Kla (KLAC) 29.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Asml Holding (ASML) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) -3.3%, Asml Holding (ASML) +22.9%, Kla (KLAC) +15.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Kla (KLAC) has the highest net margin (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 10.7%, Asml Holding (ASML) 29.1%, Kla (KLAC) 36.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Asml Holding (ASML) returned the most: Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) +34.7%, Asml Holding (ASML) +56.5%, Kla (KLAC) +35.5%. Over five years, Kla (KLAC) compounded fastest (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) +15.3%/yr, Asml Holding (ASML) +15.6%/yr, Kla (KLAC) +35.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Asml Holding (ASML) has the highest dividend yield: Asml Holding (ASML) 0.56%, Kla (KLAC) 0.28%. Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Asml Holding (ASML) has been the steadiest (Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) 69.7%, Asml Holding (ASML) 46.8%, Kla (KLAC) 61.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ACLS, ASML and KLAC?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Asml Holding (ASML) leads on 5. 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.