BCPC vs ESI vs Q Stock Comparison

Balchem, Element Solutions and Qnity Electronics Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
BCPC Balchem Corp
$170.62 +1.6% 1M +8.9% 1Y
Market cap
$5.37B
P/E
31.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.11B
Div. yield
–
Specialty Chemicals Basic Materials
6 wins
ESI Element Solutions Inc
$33.53 -6.1% 1M +28.1% 1Y
Market cap
$8.43B
P/E
41.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.49B
Div. yield
–
Specialty Chemicals Basic Materials
4 wins
Q Qnity Electronics, Inc.
$114.12 -8.4% 1M
Market cap
$24.61B
P/E
42.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.21B
Div. yield
0.00%
Specialty Chemicals Basic Materials
1 win

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Balchem leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Balchem 6, Element Solutions 4, Qnity Electronics 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionBCPCESIQLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $5.37B $8.43B $24.61B Q
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 31.4x 41.1x 42.0x BCPC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 33.4x 19.7x 26.2x ESI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.4% +39.6% +14.8% ESI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 15.4% 5.9% 11.2% BCPC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 12.1% 5.4% 8.3% BCPC
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.3x 3.2x 1.8x BCPC
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +8.9% +28.1% — ESI
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +2.4%/yr +8.7%/yr — ESI
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 20.7% 46.8% 55.2% BCPC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 67/100 50/100 60/100 BCPC

Percentile Scorecard

BCPCESIQ

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

AxisBCPCESIQ
Valuation 34 #62 of 94 38 #59 of 94 37 #60 of 94
Growth 86 #14 of 92 76 #23 of 92 52 #45 of 92
Profitability 85 #14 of 89 59 #37 of 89 88 #12 of 89
Financial Health 89 #12 of 97 46 #53 of 97 67 #33 of 97
Shareholder Returns 41 #42 of 70 30 #49 of 70 55 #32 of 70
Overall 67 50 60
  • BCPC ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • ESI ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • Q ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodBCPCESIQSPY
1 month +1.6%-6.1%-8.4% -0.8%
3 months +3.5%-11.4%-14.2% +3.5%
6 months -2.6%-16.9%-20.7% +7.0%
Year to date +11.3%+34.2%+39.8% +12.2%
1 year +8.9%+28.1%— +13.0%
3 years +48.3%+86.3%— +86.3%
3 years, per year +14.0%+23.1%— +23.1%
5 years +12.3%+51.5%— +68.6%
5 years, per year +2.4%+8.7%— +11.0%
10 years +127.4%+349.5%— +258.0%
10 years, per year +8.6%+16.2%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureBCPCESIQSPY
Volatility, 1Y 20.7%46.8%55.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 19.3%47.4%58.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.152.172.64 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.430.60— 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -34.1%-40.3%-38.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -6.9%-31.7%-35.0% -1.8%
52-week high $183.26$49.09$175.64 $779.14
52-week low $147.36$22.99$73.54 $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.

MultipleBCPCESIQ
P/E now vs peer median 31.7xmedian 21.6x 39.8xmedian 21.6x 40.8xmedian 21.6x
P/S now vs peer median 4.9xmedian 1.4x 2.3xmedian 1.4x 4.6xmedian 1.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 19.8xmedian 12.4x 17.3xmedian 12.4x 15.7xmedian 12.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 30.5xmedian 15.8x 44.5xmedian 15.8x 28.9xmedian 15.8x
P/B now vs peer median 4.1xmedian 1.6x 2.8xmedian 1.6x 3.2xmedian 1.6x
PEG now vs peer median 1.68median 1.66 0.71median 1.66 —median 1.66

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 monthsBCPCESIQ
Revenue $1.11B $3.49B $5.21B
Gross profit $404.38M $1.28B $2.41B
Operating income $229.57M $408.70M $1.34B
Net income $170.85M $205.20M $630.00M
Free cash flow $178.00M $182.90M $825.00M
R&D $20.81M $80.00M $374.00M
EPS (diluted) $5.33 $0.84 $2.79
Cash & equivalents $66.26M $224.90M $961.00M
Total debt $145.94M $2.08B $4.02B
Shares (diluted) 32.03M 243.70M 210.20M
Enterprise value $5.09B $7.21B $21.75B

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
MetricBCPCESIQ
P/E 31.7x 39.8x 40.8x
P/FCF 30.5x 44.5x 28.9x
P/Operating cash flow 24.3x 28.7x 20.4x
P/S 4.9x 2.3x 4.6x
P/B 4.1x 2.8x 3.2x
P/Tangible book 4.5x 4.3x 3.7x
EV/EBITDA 19.8x 17.3x 15.7x
EV/EBIT 24.0x 24.4x 20.2x
EV/Revenue 5.0x 2.9x 5.2x
EV/FCF 31.0x 54.6x 32.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 24.6x 35.3x 23.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.68 0.71 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricBCPCESIQ
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.4% 39.6% 14.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 6.2% 14.4% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.4% 21.5% 13.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 11.0% 11.7% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 12.3% 17.6% 11.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 14.2% 31.9% –
Net income growth (1Y) 14.5% -14.4% -23.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 18.3% 56.0% –
EPS growth (1Y) 16.5% -15.0% -26.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 18.8% 55.8% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 11.0% -16.0% –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 12.3% -4.2% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 10.1% -32.2% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 14.8% -12.3% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricBCPCESIQ
Gross margin 36.5% 36.6% 46.2%
EBITDA margin 25.1% 16.6% 33.0%
Operating margin 20.7% 11.7% 25.6%
Pretax margin 19.9% 9.0% 16.9%
Net margin 15.4% 5.9% 11.2%
FCF margin 16.1% 5.2% 15.8%
Operating cash flow margin 20.2% 8.1% 22.4%
Return on equity 13.0% 7.2% 8.4%
Return on assets 10.1% 3.5% 4.4%
Return on invested capital 12.1% 5.4% 8.3%
Return on capital employed 15.0% 7.8% 10.5%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.6x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 1.4x 1.9x
Stock comp / revenue 1.8% 2.4% 0.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricBCPCESIQ
Debt / assets 8.6% 35.5% 28.1%
Debt / equity 0.1x 0.7x 0.5x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.3x 3.2x 1.8x
Debt / FCF 0.8x 11.4x 4.9x
Liabilities / assets 22.1% 50.7% 47.3%
Equity / assets 77.9% 49.3% 52.7%
Interest coverage – – 7.1x
Current ratio 2.5x 2.8x 2.0x
Quick ratio 1.3x 1.7x 1.5x
Cash ratio 0.4x 0.4x 0.7x
Altman Z-score 10.94 2.49 2.93

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricBCPCESIQ
Dividend yield 0.6% 1.0% 0.3%
Net buyback yield 2.1% 0.5% 0.2%
Shareholder yield 2.6% 1.5% 0.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 5.4%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 4.1%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

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.

ConsensusBCPCESIQ
Forward P/E 33.4xFY2026 19.7xFY2026 26.2xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.11FY2026 $1.70FY2026 $4.35FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +7.6%FY2026 +14.1%FY2026 +29.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +7.2% +32.9% +21.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.07BFY2026 $3.83BFY2026 $5.34BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +2.6%FY2026 +50.2%FY2026 +12.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.7% +2.1% +23.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersBCPCESIQ
Held by institutions 90.5% 100.0% –
Institutions holding 417 499 –
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.5% +0.6% –
Institutions buying 193 269 –
Institutions selling 162 176 –
Buyers to sellers 1.19 1.53 –

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.

BCPCESIQ
BCPC 1.00 0.09 0.06
ESI 0.09 1.00 0.69
Q 0.06 0.69 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, BCPC, ESI and Q?

Qnity Electronics (Q) is the largest by market capitalisation: Balchem (BCPC) $5.37B, Element Solutions (ESI) $8.43B, Qnity Electronics (Q) $24.61B.

Which stock is cheaper, BCPC, ESI and Q?

Balchem (BCPC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Balchem (BCPC) 31.4x, Element Solutions (ESI) 41.1x, Qnity Electronics (Q) 42.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Element Solutions (ESI) is cheapest (Balchem (BCPC) 33.4x, Element Solutions (ESI) 19.7x, Qnity Electronics (Q) 26.2x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Element Solutions (ESI) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Balchem (BCPC) +9.4%, Element Solutions (ESI) +39.6%, Qnity Electronics (Q) +14.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Balchem (BCPC) has the highest net margin (Balchem (BCPC) 15.4%, Element Solutions (ESI) 5.9%, Qnity Electronics (Q) 11.2%). On return on invested capital, Balchem (BCPC) leads (Balchem (BCPC) 12.1%, Element Solutions (ESI) 5.4%, Qnity Electronics (Q) 8.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Element Solutions (ESI) returned the most: Balchem (BCPC) +8.9%, Element Solutions (ESI) +28.1%. Over five years, Element Solutions (ESI) compounded fastest (Balchem (BCPC) +2.4%/yr, Element Solutions (ESI) +8.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Balchem (BCPC) 0.00%, Element Solutions (ESI) 0.00%, Qnity Electronics (Q) 0.00%. Balchem (BCPC) and Element Solutions (ESI) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Balchem (BCPC) has been the steadiest (Balchem (BCPC) 20.7%, Element Solutions (ESI) 46.8%, Qnity Electronics (Q) 55.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, BCPC, ESI and Q?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Balchem (BCPC) leads on 6. 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.