AIT vs FERG Stock Comparison

Applied Industrial Technologies and Ferguson Enterprises Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Applied Industrial Technologies leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Applied Industrial Technologies 7, Ferguson Enterprises 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionAITFERGLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $11.07B $44.58B FERG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 26.7x 22.0x FERG
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 25.4x 21.5x FERG
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +8.8% +5.2% AIT
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 8.3% 6.5% AIT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 19.2% 21.7% FERG
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.2x 1.0x AIT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +25.0% -7.9% AIT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +27.5%/yr +8.8%/yr AIT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 26.3% 29.9% AIT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 68/100 67/100 AIT

Percentile Scorecard

AITFERG

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

AxisAITFERG
Valuation 20 #37 of 46 44 #26 of 46
Growth 58 #17 of 39 79 #9 of 39
Profitability 95 #3 of 40 87 #6 of 40
Financial Health 88 #7 of 49 48 #26 of 49
Shareholder Returns 77 #8 of 32 74 #9 of 32
Overall 68 67
  • AIT ranked among 49 companies in Distribution and Rental
  • FERG ranked among 49 companies in Distribution and Rental

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodAITFERGSPY
1 month -2.3%+3.1% -0.8%
3 months -6.8%-2.0% +3.5%
6 months +9.1%-13.2% +7.0%
Year to date +26.7%+3.1% +12.2%
1 year +25.0%-7.9% +13.0%
3 years +115.8%+51.2% +86.3%
3 years, per year +29.2%+14.8% +23.1%
5 years +237.0%+52.1% +68.6%
5 years, per year +27.5%+8.8% +11.0%
10 years +578.4%+333.0% +258.0%
10 years, per year +21.1%+15.8% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureAITFERGSPY
Volatility, 1Y 26.3%29.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 28.1%30.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.821.13 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.95-0.26 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -26.5%-43.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -10.2%-14.3% -1.8%
52-week high $362.17$267.71 $779.14
52-week low $240.63$214.24 $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.

MultipleAITFERG
P/E now vs peer median 29.3xmedian 25.1x 22.0xmedian 25.1x
P/S now vs peer median 2.4xmedian 1.0x 1.4xmedian 1.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 19.7xmedian 13.3x 15.0xmedian 13.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median 26.0xmedian 21.5x 19.7xmedian 21.5x
P/B now vs peer median 6.4xmedian 2.4x 7.6xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 3.97median 2.38 —median 2.38

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 monthsAITFERG
Revenue $4.97B $31.35B
Gross profit $1.51B $9.73B
Operating income $549.47M $2.82B
Net income $414.53M $2.03B
Free cash flow $460.52M $2.26B
EPS (diluted) $10.95 $10.42
Cash & equivalents – $820.00M
Total debt $262.30M $4.13B
Shares (diluted) 37.86M 194.80M
Enterprise value $10.95B $41.79B

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
MetricAITFERG
P/E 29.3x 22.0x
P/FCF 26.0x 19.7x
P/Operating cash flow 24.7x 17.0x
P/S 2.4x 1.4x
P/B 6.4x 7.6x
P/Tangible book 7.7x 8.5x
EV/EBITDA 19.7x 15.0x
EV/EBIT 22.0x 17.0x
EV/Revenue 2.4x 1.5x
EV/FCF 26.3x 21.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 25.0x 18.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 3.97 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricAITFERG
Revenue growth (1Y) 8.8% 5.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.0% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) 8.9% 7.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 5.4% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 10.2% 17.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 5.1% –
Net income growth (1Y) 5.5% 31.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 6.1% –
EPS growth (1Y) 8.2% 34.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 7.4% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -1.7% 35.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 12.1% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -1.0% 42.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 13.2% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricAITFERG
Gross margin 30.3% 31.0%
EBITDA margin 12.4% 10.2%
Operating margin 11.1% 9.0%
Pretax margin 11.0% 8.3%
Net margin 8.3% 6.5%
FCF margin 9.3% 7.2%
Operating cash flow margin 9.7% 8.3%
Return on equity 22.3% 34.0%
Return on assets 13.8% 11.4%
Return on invested capital 19.2% 21.7%
Return on capital employed 23.0% 23.4%
Asset turnover 1.7x 1.8x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.2x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.1% 0.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricAITFERG
Debt / assets 8.7% 23.2%
Debt / equity 0.1x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.2x 1.0x
Debt / FCF 0.6x 1.8x
Liabilities / assets 38.1% 67.0%
Equity / assets 61.9% 33.0%
Interest coverage – –
Current ratio 2.6x 1.8x
Quick ratio 1.6x 0.8x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 10.19 5.41

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricAITFERG
Dividend yield 0.6% 1.6%
Net buyback yield 2.6% 1.9%
Shareholder yield 3.3% 3.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) 17.5% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 15.8% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 14.0% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 10.7% –

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.

ConsensusAITFERG
Forward P/E 25.4xFY2027 21.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $12.83FY2027 $10.68FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +17.2%FY2027 +7.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +7.8% +20.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $4.91BFY2027 $34.30BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -1.1%FY2027 +11.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +5.4% -0.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersAITFERG
Held by institutions 94.4% 96.3%
Institutions holding 617 937
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.3% +2.1%
Institutions buying 326 477
Institutions selling 207 343
Buyers to sellers 1.57 1.39

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.

AITFERG
AIT 1.00 0.57
FERG 0.57 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, AIT and FERG?

Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) $11.07B, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) $44.58B.

Which stock is cheaper, AIT and FERG?

Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) 26.7x, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 22.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) is cheapest (Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) 25.4x, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 21.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) +8.8%, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) +5.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) has the highest net margin (Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) 8.3%, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 6.5%). On return on invested capital, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) leads (Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) 19.2%, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 21.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) returned the most: Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) +25.0%, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) -7.9%. Over five years, Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) compounded fastest (Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) +27.5%/yr, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) +8.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) 0.01%, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 0.00%. Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) has been the steadiest (Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) 26.3%, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 29.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do AIT and FERG move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.57, a moderate positive relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, AIT and FERG?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT) leads on 7. 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.