ALC vs ISRG vs JNJ Stock Comparison

Alcon, Intuitive Surgical and Johnson & Johnson Prices as of Nov 5, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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ALC Alcon Inc
$76.55 +21.2% 1M +3.0% 1Y
Market cap
$37.31B
P/E
58.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$10.80B
Div. yield
0.37%
Medical Devices Healthcare
1 win
ISRG Intuitive Surgical Inc
$468.52 +15.8% 1M -14.6% 1Y
Market cap
$162.39B
P/E
55.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.58B
Div. yield
–
Medical Devices Healthcare
3 wins
JNJ Johnson & Johnson
$272.33 +6.9% 1M +46.4% 1Y
Market cap
$655.58B
P/E
40.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$99.34B
Div. yield
1.94%
Pharmaceuticals Healthcare
7 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Johnson & Johnson leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Johnson & Johnson 7, Intuitive Surgical 3, Alcon 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionALCISRGJNJLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $37.31B $162.39B $655.58B JNJ
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 58.7x 55.3x 40.8x JNJ
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 23.6x 40.7x 25.4x ALC
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +8.5% +20.5% +7.8% ISRG
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 6.0% 25.5% 16.2% ISRG
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 3.6% — 17.6% JNJ
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — — 0.8x –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.37% — 1.94% JNJ
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +3.0% -14.6% +46.4% JNJ
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -2.2%/yr +5.1%/yr +10.8%/yr JNJ
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 29.5% 35.9% 21.3% JNJ
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 67/100 79/100 67/100 ISRG

Percentile Scorecard

ALCISRGJNJ

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

AxisALCISRGJNJ
Valuation 77 #54 of 229 47 #123 of 229 86 #93 of 634
Growth 46 #119 of 221 81 #44 of 221 43 #350 of 608
Profitability 76 #51 of 210 97 #7 of 210 93 #39 of 557
Financial Health 62 #93 of 240 81 #47 of 240 40 #393 of 654
Shareholder Returns 76 #36 of 147 93 #12 of 147 73 #108 of 403
Overall 67 79 67
  • ALC ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ISRG ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • JNJ ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodALCISRGJNJSPY
1 month +21.2%+15.8%+6.9% -5.9%
3 months +10.1%+25.4%+6.0% -4.6%
6 months +19.8%+3.3%+22.4% +0.2%
Year to date -2.9%-17.3%+31.6% +7.5%
1 year +3.0%-14.6%+46.4% +8.2%
3 years +3.5%+69.0%+79.5% +68.3%
3 years, per year +1.2%+19.1%+21.6% +19.0%
5 years -10.6%+28.4%+66.6% +56.5%
5 years, per year -2.2%+5.1%+10.8% +9.4%
10 years —+528.0%+136.6% +251.5%
10 years, per year —+20.2%+9.0% +13.4%

Risk

MeasureALCISRGJNJSPY
Volatility, 1Y 29.5%35.9%21.3% 13.6%
Downside volatility, 1Y 29.0%38.0%20.2% 14.2%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.400.93-0.10 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.10-0.412.18 0.60
Max drawdown, 5Y -38.4%-49.9%-23.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -12.2%-21.0%-2.2% -5.9%
52-week high $87.18$592.85$278.47 $779.14
52-week low $62.02$332.02$186.00 $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.

MultipleALCISRGJNJ
P/E now vs peer median 58.7xmedian 26.9x 55.3xmedian 26.9x 40.8xmedian 17.8x
P/S now vs peer median 3.5xmedian 2.9x 14.0xmedian 2.9x 6.6xmedian 8.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 17.5x 38.7xmedian 17.5x 20.5xmedian 15.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 21.4xmedian 26.4x 45.1xmedian 26.4x 31.8xmedian 21.0x
P/B now vs peer median 1.7xmedian 2.3x 10.1xmedian 2.3x 8.0xmedian 2.0x
PEG now vs peer median 2.80median 0.88 2.15median 0.88 -1.90median 0.36

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 monthsALCISRGJNJ
Revenue $10.80B $11.58B $99.34B
Gross profit $6.17B $7.78B $67.11B
Operating income $948.00M $3.28B $25.19B
Net income $643.00M $2.97B $16.10B
Free cash flow $1.74B $3.60B $20.59B
R&D $1.43B $1.49B $16.08B
EPS (diluted) $1.30 $8.41 $6.57
Cash & equivalents $1.36B $2.98B $16.91B
Total debt $4.72B – $44.65B
Shares (diluted) 496.20M 351.60M 2.45B
Enterprise value $28.28B $142.81B $575.44B

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
MetricALCISRGJNJ
P/E 58.7x 55.3x 40.8x
P/FCF 21.4x 45.1x 31.8x
P/Operating cash flow 16.2x 39.7x 25.1x
P/S 3.5x 14.0x 6.6x
P/B 1.7x 10.1x 8.0x
P/Tangible book 2.8x 10.9x 18.8x
EV/EBITDA – 38.7x 20.5x
EV/EBIT 42.1x 48.2x 27.1x
EV/Revenue 3.7x 13.7x 6.9x
EV/FCF 22.9x 44.0x 33.2x
EV/Operating cash flow 17.3x 38.7x 26.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.80 2.15 -1.90

Growth

14 metrics
MetricALCISRGJNJ
Revenue growth (1Y) 8.5% 20.5% 7.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.9% 19.1% 5.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.7% 21.9% 7.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 7.3% 19.5% 5.1%
Operating income growth (1Y) -34.3% 16.6% 7.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 7.5% 24.8% 1.4%
Net income growth (1Y) -40.1% 7.5% -35.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 21.1% 24.4% -22.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -40.7% 10.8% -36.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 21.0% 25.7% -21.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 10.3% 38.1% 8.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 25.9% 26.4% 12.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 7.5% 58.4% 5.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 48.0% 42.0% 14.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricALCISRGJNJ
Gross margin 57.2% 67.2% 67.6%
EBITDA margin – 35.3% 33.5%
Operating margin 8.8% 28.4% 25.4%
Pretax margin 6.9% 31.3% 17.9%
Net margin 6.0% 25.5% 16.2%
FCF margin 16.1% 31.1% 20.7%
Operating cash flow margin 21.4% 35.3% 26.3%
Return on equity 2.9% 17.3% 19.3%
Return on assets 2.1% 14.8% 8.1%
Return on invested capital 3.6% – 17.6%
Return on capital employed 3.4% 18.7% 17.5%
Asset turnover 0.3x 0.6x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.6x 1.4x 1.6x
Stock comp / revenue 1.6% 7.2% 1.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricALCISRGJNJ
Debt / assets 15.2% – 22.6%
Debt / equity 0.2x – 0.5x
Net debt / EBITDA – – 0.8x
Debt / FCF 2.7x – 2.2x
Liabilities / assets 30.6% 16.7% 58.7%
Equity / assets 69.4% 83.3% 41.3%
Interest coverage 9.2x – 25.6x
Current ratio 2.1x 3.3x 1.0x
Quick ratio 1.3x 2.3x 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.7x 1.6x 0.3x
Altman Z-score – 32.00 5.52

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricALCISRGJNJ
Dividend yield 0.4% – 1.9%
Net buyback yield 2.4% 2.6% 0.6%
Shareholder yield 2.8% 2.6% 2.6%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 79.0%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 61.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 3.9%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 1.0%

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.

ConsensusALCISRGJNJ
Forward P/E 23.6xFY2026 40.7xFY2026 25.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $3.25FY2026 $11.51FY2026 $10.72FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +8.7%FY2026 +28.9%FY2026 -0.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +15.4% +4.5% +5.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $10.60BFY2026 $11.61BFY2026 $106.54BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +5.3%FY2026 +15.4%FY2026 +13.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +8.0% +11.2% +7.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersALCISRGJNJ
Held by institutions 48.8% 86.2% 74.7%
Institutions holding 631 2,240 4,698
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.3% +4.6% +1.8%
Institutions buying 226 1,072 2,297
Institutions selling 274 879 1,899
Buyers to sellers 0.82 1.22 1.21

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.

ALCISRGJNJ
ALC 1.00 0.42 0.27
ISRG 0.42 1.00 0.15
JNJ 0.27 0.15 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ALC, ISRG and JNJ?

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is the largest by market capitalisation: Alcon (ALC) $37.31B, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) $162.39B, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $655.58B.

Which stock is cheaper, ALC, ISRG and JNJ?

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Alcon (ALC) 58.7x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 55.3x, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 40.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Alcon (ALC) is cheapest (Alcon (ALC) 23.6x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 40.7x, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 25.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Alcon (ALC) +8.5%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) +20.5%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) +7.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) has the highest net margin (Alcon (ALC) 6.0%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 25.5%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 16.2%). On return on invested capital, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) leads (Alcon (ALC) 3.6%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 17.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) returned the most: Alcon (ALC) +3.0%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) -14.6%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) +46.4%. Over five years, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) compounded fastest (Alcon (ALC) -2.2%/yr, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) +5.1%/yr, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) +10.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) has the highest dividend yield: Alcon (ALC) 0.37%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 1.94%. Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) has been the steadiest (Alcon (ALC) 29.5%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 35.9%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 21.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ALC, ISRG and JNJ?

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