AVTR vs BCC vs GWW Stock Comparison

Avantor, Boise Cascade and W.W. Grainger Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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AVTR Avantor, Inc.
$15.65 -0.9% 1M +35.1% 1Y
Market cap
$10.42B
P/E
30.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.64B
Div. yield
–
Industrial Distribution Industrials
1 win
BCC BOISE CASCADE Co
$77.95 +4.0% 1M +10.7% 1Y
Market cap
$2.67B
P/E
22.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.59B
Div. yield
0.01%
Industrial Distribution Industrials
3 wins
GWW W.W. Grainger, Inc.
$1,489.46 +15.7% 1M +55.8% 1Y
Market cap
$70.02B
P/E
32.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$19.37B
Div. yield
0.01%
Industrial Distribution Industrials
8 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

W.W. Grainger leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (W.W. Grainger 8, Boise Cascade 3, Avantor 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionAVTRBCCGWWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $10.42B $2.67B $70.02B GWW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 30.9x 22.2x 32.4x BCC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 20.1x 20.9x 30.4x AVTR
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +0.9% +1.2% +9.1% GWW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.1% 1.8% 11.2% GWW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 5.2% 5.3% 32.3% GWW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.5x 0.2x 0.6x BCC
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.01% BCC
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +35.1% +10.7% +55.8% GWW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -16.3%/yr +2.3%/yr +25.8%/yr GWW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 43.2% 38.3% 24.3% GWW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 34/100 56/100 62/100 GWW

Percentile Scorecard

AVTRBCCGWW

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

AxisAVTRBCCGWW
Valuation 36 #30 of 46 96 #3 of 46 9 #42 of 46
Growth 37 #25 of 39 8 #36 of 39 82 #8 of 39
Profitability 50 #21 of 41 48 #22 of 41 98 #2 of 41
Financial Health 38 #31 of 49 79 #11 of 49 69 #16 of 49
Shareholder Returns 12 #30 of 34 49 #18 of 34 52 #17 of 34
Overall 34 56 62
  • AVTR ranked among 49 companies in Distribution and Rental
  • BCC ranked among 49 companies in Distribution and Rental
  • GWW 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

PeriodAVTRBCCGWWSPY
1 month -0.9%+4.0%+15.7% -1.0%
3 months +17.2%-8.2%+15.9% -0.4%
6 months +85.6%+5.0%+27.3% +4.5%
Year to date +36.6%+5.9%+47.6% +12.4%
1 year +35.1%+10.7%+55.8% +13.6%
3 years -14.8%-25.3%+94.0% +76.4%
3 years, per year -5.2%-9.3%+24.7% +20.8%
5 years -59.0%+11.8%+214.9% +63.7%
5 years, per year -16.3%+2.3%+25.8% +10.4%
10 years —+321.4%+625.7% +267.7%
10 years, per year —+15.5%+21.9% +13.9%

Risk

MeasureAVTRBCCGWWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 43.2%38.3%24.3% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 39.3%31.3%21.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.810.950.53 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.810.282.30 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -82.4%-57.3%-24.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.5%-14.4%0.0% -1.6%
52-week high $17.29$91.03$1,489.46 $779.14
52-week low $7.41$65.47$918.18 $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.

MultipleAVTRBCCGWW
P/E now vs peer median 31.4xmedian 25.1x 22.7xmedian 25.1x 32.4xmedian 25.1x
P/S now vs peer median 1.6xmedian 1.1x 0.4xmedian 1.1x 3.6xmedian 1.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.1xmedian 13.2x 7.9xmedian 13.2x 21.6xmedian 13.2x
P/FCF now vs peer median 24.1xmedian 20.8x 20.4xmedian 20.8x 40.6xmedian 20.8x
P/B now vs peer median 1.8xmedian 2.5x 1.3xmedian 2.5x 14.7xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median -11.82median 2.23 -0.64median 2.23 3.96median 2.23

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 monthsAVTRBCCGWW
Revenue $6.64B $6.59B $19.37B
Gross profit $2.10B $1.10B $7.64B
Operating income $487.20M $183.55M $3.06B
Net income $337.20M $120.31M $2.28B
Free cash flow $439.20M $133.00M $1.72B
EPS (diluted) $0.50 $3.44 $45.92
Cash & equivalents $464.30M $385.15M $768.00M
Total debt $3.68B $448.67M $2.69B
Shares (diluted) 680.90M 35.00M 47.10M
Enterprise value $9.00B $1.16B $67.38B

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
MetricAVTRBCCGWW
P/E 31.4x 22.7x 32.4x
P/FCF 24.1x 20.4x 40.6x
P/Operating cash flow 18.1x 9.8x 31.1x
P/S 1.6x 0.4x 3.6x
P/B 1.8x 1.3x 14.7x
P/Tangible book 3.7x 1.4x 15.8x
EV/EBITDA 15.1x 7.9x 21.6x
EV/EBIT 28.4x 15.2x 23.4x
EV/Revenue 2.1x 0.4x 3.7x
EV/FCF 31.5x 20.9x 41.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 23.6x 10.0x 32.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -11.82 -0.64 3.96

Growth

14 metrics
MetricAVTRBCCGWW
Revenue growth (1Y) 0.9% 1.2% 9.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -1.9% -1.1% 6.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -3.8% -1.9% 10.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -4.5% -8.5% 5.9%
Operating income growth (1Y) 83.5% -29.4% 22.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -14.0% -34.7% 6.3%
Net income growth (1Y) 510.2% -37.7% 24.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -2.5% -37.9% 6.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 510.7% -33.2% 27.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -2.7% -35.1% 8.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -9.3% 27.4% 9.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -10.8% -28.2% 7.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -16.1% 309.3% 39.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -14.2% -39.4% 6.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricAVTRBCCGWW
Gross margin 31.6% 16.7% 39.4%
EBITDA margin 13.8% 5.4% 17.1%
Operating margin 7.3% 2.8% 15.8%
Pretax margin 4.8% 2.5% 15.5%
Net margin 5.1% 1.8% 11.2%
FCF margin 6.6% 2.0% 8.9%
Operating cash flow margin 8.8% 4.2% 11.6%
Return on equity 5.9% 5.9% 49.2%
Return on assets 2.9% 3.5% 23.1%
Return on invested capital 5.2% 5.3% 32.3%
Return on capital employed 4.8% 6.7% 40.8%
Asset turnover 0.6x 1.9x 2.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.7x 2.3x 1.0x
Stock comp / revenue 0.7% 0.2% 0.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricAVTRBCCGWW
Debt / assets 31.7% 13.2% 26.5%
Debt / equity 0.6x 0.2x 0.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 3.5x 0.2x 0.6x
Debt / FCF 8.4x 3.4x 1.6x
Liabilities / assets 49.8% 39.8% 53.2%
Equity / assets 50.2% 60.2% 46.8%
Interest coverage 3.0x 7.0x –
Current ratio 1.9x 2.8x 2.6x
Quick ratio 1.2x 1.3x 1.5x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.6x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 2.17 4.33 13.38

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricAVTRBCCGWW
Dividend yield – 1.1% 0.6%
Net buyback yield -0.1% 6.8% 1.4%
Shareholder yield -0.1% 7.9% 2.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 28.4% 22.3%
Payout ratio (FCF) – 25.7% 29.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) – -2.2% 10.7%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – -43.2% 9.6%

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.

ConsensusAVTRBCCGWW
Forward P/E 20.1xFY2026 20.9xFY2026 30.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.78FY2026 $3.73FY2026 $48.94FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -13.3%FY2026 +5.7%FY2026 +24.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +7.7% +29.2% +8.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $6.42BFY2026 $6.80BFY2026 $20.21BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -2.0%FY2026 +6.3%FY2026 +12.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -1.7% +4.2% +0.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersAVTRBCCGWW
Held by institutions 100.0% 96.0% 75.5%
Institutions holding 453 333 1,368
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.5% -0.4% +3.5%
Institutions buying 282 164 660
Institutions selling 109 128 428
Buyers to sellers 2.59 1.28 1.54

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.

AVTRBCCGWW
AVTR 1.00 0.26 0.17
BCC 0.26 1.00 0.39
GWW 0.17 0.39 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, AVTR, BCC and GWW?

W.W. Grainger (GWW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Avantor (AVTR) $10.42B, Boise Cascade (BCC) $2.67B, W.W. Grainger (GWW) $70.02B.

Which stock is cheaper, AVTR, BCC and GWW?

Boise Cascade (BCC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Avantor (AVTR) 30.9x, Boise Cascade (BCC) 22.2x, W.W. Grainger (GWW) 32.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Avantor (AVTR) is cheapest (Avantor (AVTR) 20.1x, Boise Cascade (BCC) 20.9x, W.W. Grainger (GWW) 30.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

W.W. Grainger (GWW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Avantor (AVTR) +0.9%, Boise Cascade (BCC) +1.2%, W.W. Grainger (GWW) +9.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

W.W. Grainger (GWW) has the highest net margin (Avantor (AVTR) 5.1%, Boise Cascade (BCC) 1.8%, W.W. Grainger (GWW) 11.2%). On return on invested capital, W.W. Grainger (GWW) leads (Avantor (AVTR) 5.2%, Boise Cascade (BCC) 5.3%, W.W. Grainger (GWW) 32.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year W.W. Grainger (GWW) returned the most: Avantor (AVTR) +35.1%, Boise Cascade (BCC) +10.7%, W.W. Grainger (GWW) +55.8%. Over five years, W.W. Grainger (GWW) compounded fastest (Avantor (AVTR) -16.3%/yr, Boise Cascade (BCC) +2.3%/yr, W.W. Grainger (GWW) +25.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Boise Cascade (BCC) has the highest dividend yield: Avantor (AVTR) 0.00%, Boise Cascade (BCC) 0.01%, W.W. Grainger (GWW) 0.01%. Avantor (AVTR) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, W.W. Grainger (GWW) has been the steadiest (Avantor (AVTR) 43.2%, Boise Cascade (BCC) 38.3%, W.W. Grainger (GWW) 24.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, AVTR, BCC and GWW?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, W.W. Grainger (GWW) leads on 8. 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.