ADSK vs AYI vs ZWS Stock Comparison

Autodesk, Acuity Inc. (De) and Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ADSK Autodesk, Inc.
$241.73 +19.0% 1M -18.6% 1Y
Market cap
$52.47B
P/E
32.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$7.79B
Div. yield
–
Creative Software Technology
5 wins
AYI Acuity Inc. (De)
$327.36 +6.1% 1M -9.4% 1Y
Market cap
$9.59B
P/E
18.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$4.64B
Div. yield
0.00%
Building Products Industrials
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Autodesk leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Autodesk 5, Acuity Inc. (De) 4, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionADSKAYIZWSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $52.47B $9.59B $7.42B ADSK
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 32.0x 18.1x 25.5x AYI
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 19.7x 16.4x 23.9x AYI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +17.9% +6.8% +10.1% ADSK
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 21.1% 11.4% 15.9% ADSK
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 26.5% 15.4% 14.0% ADSK
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -0.4x 0.1x 0.4x ADSK
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.01% ZWS
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -18.6% -9.4% -6.8% ZWS
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -5.3%/yr +9.8%/yr +4.3%/yr AYI
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 39.5% 38.1% 30.0% ZWS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 53/100 81/100 78/100 AYI

Percentile Scorecard

ADSKAYIZWS

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

AxisADSKAYIZWS
Valuation 32 #20 of 29 76 #14 of 55 44 #31 of 55
Growth 62 #11 of 27 84 #9 of 51 98 #2 of 51
Profitability 92 #3 of 26 77 #12 of 49 81 #10 of 49
Financial Health 43 #18 of 31 87 #8 of 55 89 #7 of 55
Shareholder Returns 36 #10 of 15 82 #8 of 40 77 #10 of 40
Overall 53 81 78
  • ADSK ranked among 32 companies in Workplace Software
  • AYI ranked among 59 companies in Construction Products
  • ZWS ranked among 59 companies in Construction Products

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodADSKAYIZWSSPY
1 month +19.0%+6.1%-4.5% +0.7%
3 months +2.9%-3.0%-10.8% +3.7%
6 months +2.0%+13.0%-13.9% +7.1%
Year to date -18.3%-9.1%-3.8% +12.8%
1 year -18.6%-9.4%-6.8% +11.9%
3 years +22.2%+105.6%+71.6% +85.2%
3 years, per year +6.9%+27.2%+19.7% +22.8%
5 years -23.9%+59.4%+23.3% +67.6%
5 years, per year -5.3%+9.8%+4.3% +10.9%
10 years +236.4%+46.7%+372.3% +262.0%
10 years, per year +12.9%+3.9%+16.8% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureADSKAYIZWSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 39.5%38.1%30.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 42.3%41.7%29.2% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.431.390.85 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.47-0.25-0.23 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -50.8%-34.7%-47.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -22.1%-13.1%-15.9% -1.2%
52-week high $310.25$376.69$53.17 $779.14
52-week low $187.72$257.79$43.46 $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.

MultipleADSKAYIZWS
P/E now vs peer median 30.9xmedian 33.1x 18.7xmedian 20.3x 25.6xmedian 20.3x
P/S now vs peer median 6.5xmedian 2.5x 2.1xmedian 1.6x 4.1xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 17.0xmedian 9.8x 11.2xmedian 12.6x 15.5xmedian 12.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 17.8xmedian 15.2x 13.0xmedian 16.9x 19.1xmedian 16.9x
P/B now vs peer median 14.9xmedian 3.1x 3.3xmedian 3.0x 4.4xmedian 3.0x
PEG now vs peer median 1.28median 0.74 1.13median 1.13 0.65median 1.13

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 monthsADSKAYIZWS
Revenue $7.79B $4.64B $1.83B
Gross profit $7.11B $2.35B $920.70M
Operating income $2.04B $713.70M $403.00M
Net income $1.64B $531.30M $290.60M
Free cash flow $2.84B $747.90M $387.00M
R&D $1.72B – –
EPS (diluted) $7.78 $17.06 $1.73
Cash & equivalents $4.10B $636.30M $307.10M
Total debt $10.43B $697.40M $500.30M
Shares (diluted) 211.00M 31.15M 168.11M
Enterprise value $40.51B $7.90B $6.17B

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
MetricADSKAYIZWS
P/E 30.9x 18.7x 25.6x
P/FCF 17.8x 13.0x 19.1x
P/Operating cash flow 17.4x 11.8x 17.9x
P/S 6.5x 2.1x 4.1x
P/B 14.9x 3.3x 4.4x
P/Tangible book 17.1x 4.9x 8.6x
EV/EBITDA 17.0x 11.2x 15.5x
EV/EBIT 24.2x 13.7x 18.8x
EV/Revenue 6.3x 2.1x 4.2x
EV/FCF 17.4x 13.1x 19.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 17.0x 11.8x 18.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.28 1.13 0.65

Growth

14 metrics
MetricADSKAYIZWS
Revenue growth (1Y) 17.9% 6.8% 10.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 14.3% 5.5% 6.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 18.8% 13.1% 23.6%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 14.7% 11.1% 15.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 46.9% 26.6% 50.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 26.3% 14.7% 31.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 57.4% 34.0% 51.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 23.4% 15.4% 37.0%
EPS growth (1Y) 60.4% 36.1% 53.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 24.2% 16.6% 39.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 50.4% 37.3% 29.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 9.0% 12.6% 13.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 50.7% 40.3% 34.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 8.8% 13.5% 14.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricADSKAYIZWS
Gross margin 91.2% 50.6% 50.4%
EBITDA margin 37.3% 18.7% 26.8%
Operating margin 26.2% 15.4% 22.1%
Pretax margin 27.0% 14.7% 21.0%
Net margin 21.1% 11.4% 15.9%
FCF margin 36.4% 16.1% 21.2%
Operating cash flow margin 37.2% 17.8% 22.6%
Return on equity 49.9% 18.2% 17.3%
Return on assets 13.2% 11.2% 10.4%
Return on invested capital 26.5% 15.4% 14.0%
Return on capital employed 35.0% 19.5% 16.2%
Asset turnover 0.6x 1.0x 0.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.8x 1.6x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 9.1% 1.1% 2.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricADSKAYIZWS
Debt / assets 22.9% 14.3% 17.8%
Debt / equity 0.9x 0.2x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA -0.4x 0.1x 0.4x
Debt / FCF 1.0x 0.9x 1.3x
Liabilities / assets 73.9% 39.0% 39.7%
Equity / assets 26.1% 61.0% 60.3%
Interest coverage – – 16.1x
Current ratio 0.9x 1.7x 2.9x
Quick ratio 0.7x 1.2x 1.8x
Cash ratio 0.6x 0.6x 1.0x
Altman Z-score 4.06 6.07 4.85

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricADSKAYIZWS
Dividend yield – 0.2% 1.0%
Net buyback yield 2.9% 2.9% 2.1%
Shareholder yield 2.9% 3.1% 3.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 4.5% 25.3%
Payout ratio (FCF) – 3.2% 19.0%
Dividend growth (1Y) – 15.5% 21.1%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 12.3% 14.5%

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.

ConsensusADSKAYIZWS
Forward P/E 19.7xFY2026 16.4xFY2027 23.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $12.24FY2026 $20.01FY2027 $1.87FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +17.4%FY2026 +0.6%FY2027 +23.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +13.2% +21.7% +3.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $8.49BFY2026 $4.68BFY2027 $1.81BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +17.8%FY2026 +0.9%FY2027 +6.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +4.7% +14.4% +3.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersADSKAYIZWS
Held by institutions 96.0% 99.2% 88.6%
Institutions holding 1,196 632 437
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.6% +4.1% +0.9%
Institutions buying 501 330 237
Institutions selling 536 191 145
Buyers to sellers 0.93 1.73 1.63

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.

ADSKAYIZWS
ADSK 1.00 0.05 0.06
AYI 0.05 1.00 0.39
ZWS 0.06 0.39 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ADSK, AYI and ZWS?

Autodesk (ADSK) is the largest by market capitalisation: Autodesk (ADSK) $52.47B, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) $9.59B, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) $7.42B.

Which stock is cheaper, ADSK, AYI and ZWS?

Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Autodesk (ADSK) 32.0x, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) 18.1x, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) 25.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) is cheapest (Autodesk (ADSK) 19.7x, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) 16.4x, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) 23.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Autodesk (ADSK) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Autodesk (ADSK) +17.9%, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) +6.8%, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) +10.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Autodesk (ADSK) has the highest net margin (Autodesk (ADSK) 21.1%, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) 11.4%, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) 15.9%). On return on invested capital, Autodesk (ADSK) leads (Autodesk (ADSK) 26.5%, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) 15.4%, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) 14.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) returned the most: Autodesk (ADSK) -18.6%, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) -9.4%, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) -6.8%. Over five years, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) compounded fastest (Autodesk (ADSK) -5.3%/yr, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) +9.8%/yr, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) +4.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) has the highest dividend yield: Autodesk (ADSK) 0.00%, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) 0.00%, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) 0.01%. Autodesk (ADSK) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) has been the steadiest (Autodesk (ADSK) 39.5%, Acuity Inc. (De) (AYI) 38.1%, Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (ZWS) 30.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ADSK, AYI and ZWS?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Autodesk (ADSK) 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.