BHE vs FLEX vs CLS Stock Comparison

Benchmark Electronics, Flex and Celestica Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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BHE Benchmark Electronics Inc
$73.44 -11.2% 1M +71.9% 1Y
Market cap
$2.58B
P/E
46.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.95B
Div. yield
–
Electronic Manufacturing Services Technology
3 wins
FLEX Flex Ltd.
$93.03 -17.7% 1M +44.8% 1Y
Market cap
$34.49B
P/E
42.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$30.95B
Div. yield
–
Electronic Manufacturing Services Technology
2 wins
CLS Celestica Inc
$300.08 -15.9% 1M -8.1% 1Y
Market cap
$34.40B
P/E
27.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$18.23B
Div. yield
–
Electronic Manufacturing Services Technology
6 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Celestica leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Celestica 6, Benchmark Electronics 3, Flex 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionBHEFLEXCLSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $2.58B $34.49B $34.40B FLEX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 46.0x 42.3x 27.6x CLS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 25.5x 19.1x 26.0x FLEX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +12.9% +17.5% +61.6% CLS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 1.9% — 6.8% CLS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 5.0% — 25.0% CLS
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -0.8x — -1.9x CLS
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +71.9% +44.8% -8.1% BHE
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +25.8%/yr +48.9%/yr +98.3%/yr CLS
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 45.8% 69.9% 79.9% BHE
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 61/100 49/100 60/100 BHE

Percentile Scorecard

BHEFLEXCLS

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

AxisBHEFLEXCLS
Valuation 82 #21 of 111 65 #40 of 111 60 #45 of 111
Growth 67 #36 of 108 50 #55 of 108 89 #13 of 108
Profitability 50 #53 of 104 68 #34 of 104 78 #24 of 104
Financial Health 47 #62 of 115 13 #100 of 115 56 #51 of 115
Shareholder Returns 61 #31 of 78 – 20 #63 of 78
Overall 61 49 60
  • BHE ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • FLEX ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • CLS ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodBHEFLEXCLSSPY
1 month -11.2%-17.7%-15.9% +0.9%
3 months -1.1%-9.7%-8.8% +5.9%
6 months +1.4%+2.7%-20.3% +8.5%
Year to date +71.7%+54.0%+1.5% +13.3%
1 year +71.9%+44.8%-8.1% +12.4%
3 years +205.4%+380.0%+1,240.8% +88.1%
3 years, per year +45.1%+68.8%+137.7% +23.5%
5 years +215.1%+630.2%+2,955.8% +68.2%
5 years, per year +25.8%+48.9%+98.3% +11.0%
10 years +193.8%+751.9%+2,419.6% +263.4%
10 years, per year +11.4%+23.9%+38.1% +13.8%

Risk

MeasureBHEFLEXCLSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 45.8%69.9%79.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 47.6%64.4%86.3% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.003.133.38 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.570.64-0.10 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -37.2%-52.8%-54.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -25.6%-42.6%-36.5% -0.9%
52-week high $98.67$162.07$472.40 $779.14
52-week low $42.15$54.51$246.25 $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.

MultipleBHEFLEXCLS
P/E now vs peer median 47.0xmedian 33.5x 42.3xmedian 33.5x 29.0xmedian 33.5x
P/S now vs peer median 0.9xmedian 2.8x 1.1xmedian 2.8x 2.1xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.5xmedian 19.6x —median 19.6x 20.5xmedian 19.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 22.6xmedian 29.8x 50.3xmedian 29.8x 69.4xmedian 29.8x
P/B now vs peer median 2.3xmedian 2.9x 5.9xmedian 2.9x 6.1xmedian 2.9x
PEG now vs peer median -7.03median 1.10 —median 1.10 —median 1.10

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 monthsBHEFLEXCLS
Revenue $2.95B $30.95B $18.23B
Gross profit $306.25M $2.94B $2.09B
Operating income $102.97M $1.57B $1.50B
Net income $56.03M $774.00M $1.25B
Free cash flow $116.54M – $545.40M
R&D – – $168.90M
EPS (diluted) $1.54 – $10.23
Cash & equivalents $290.66M $3.08B $3.96B
Total debt $157.84M – $818.80M
Shares (diluted) 36.40M 374.00M 121.80M
Enterprise value $1.32B $34.49B $28.93B

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
MetricBHEFLEXCLS
P/E 47.0x 42.3x 29.0x
P/FCF 22.6x 50.3x 69.4x
P/Operating cash flow 15.4x 21.3x 26.9x
P/S 0.9x 1.1x 2.1x
P/B 2.3x 5.9x 6.1x
P/Tangible book 2.3x 6.7x 6.3x
EV/EBITDA 15.5x – 20.5x
EV/EBIT 24.3x – 23.1x
EV/Revenue 0.8x 1.1x 1.9x
EV/FCF 21.4x – 63.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 14.7x 21.3x 24.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -7.03 – –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricBHEFLEXCLS
Revenue growth (1Y) 12.9% 17.5% 61.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 0.6% 3.3% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) 16.1% 25.5% 53.8%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 4.0% 14.5% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 22.0% 25.8% 62.0%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -0.5% 17.0% –
Net income growth (1Y) 59.6% -11.6% 73.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -6.2% -14.0% –
EPS growth (1Y) 58.7% – 65.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -6.7% – –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 53.1% -5.2% 154.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 134.9% 11.2% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 50.8% – 37.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 48.2% – –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricBHEFLEXCLS
Gross margin 10.4% – 11.5%
EBITDA margin 5.5% – 9.3%
Operating margin 3.5% – 8.3%
Pretax margin 3.1% – 8.0%
Net margin 1.9% – 6.8%
FCF margin 4.0% – 3.0%
Operating cash flow margin 5.8% 5.2% 7.7%
Return on equity 5.0% 13.7% 28.7%
Return on assets 2.5% 2.9% 10.0%
Return on invested capital 5.0% – 25.0%
Return on capital employed 7.6% – 32.1%
Asset turnover 1.3x 1.2x 1.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.0x 2.1x 1.1x
Stock comp / revenue 0.8% – 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricBHEFLEXCLS
Debt / assets 6.8% – 5.4%
Debt / equity 0.1x – 0.1x
Net debt / EBITDA -0.8x – -1.9x
Debt / FCF 1.4x – 1.5x
Liabilities / assets 51.3% 78.8% 59.0%
Equity / assets 48.7% 21.2% 41.0%
Interest coverage 6.9x – 21.3x
Current ratio 1.9x 1.3x 1.6x
Quick ratio 1.0x – 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.3x – 0.5x
Altman Z-score 3.51 – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricBHEFLEXCLS
Dividend yield 0.9% – –
Net buyback yield 0.6% – -8.8%
Shareholder yield 1.5% – -8.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
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.

ConsensusBHEFLEXCLS
Forward P/E 25.5xFY2026 19.1xFY2026 26.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.88FY2026 $4.88FY2026 $11.54FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +20.0%FY2026 +47.9%FY2026 +93.3%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +22.9% +38.7% +77.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $3.16BFY2026 $36.41BFY2026 $20.07BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +18.8%FY2026 +30.4%FY2026 +64.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.5% +29.4% +70.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersBHEFLEXCLS
Held by institutions 100.0% 94.3% 69.0%
Institutions holding 331 1,106 874
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.2% -0.8% +5.0%
Institutions buying 190 674 519
Institutions selling 106 342 272
Buyers to sellers 1.79 1.97 1.91

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.

BHEFLEXCLS
BHE 1.00 0.70 0.61
FLEX 0.70 1.00 0.58
CLS 0.61 0.58 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, BHE, FLEX and CLS?

Flex (FLEX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Benchmark Electronics (BHE) $2.58B, Flex (FLEX) $34.49B, Celestica (CLS) $34.40B.

Which stock is cheaper, BHE, FLEX and CLS?

Celestica (CLS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Benchmark Electronics (BHE) 46.0x, Flex (FLEX) 42.3x, Celestica (CLS) 27.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Flex (FLEX) is cheapest (Benchmark Electronics (BHE) 25.5x, Flex (FLEX) 19.1x, Celestica (CLS) 26.0x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Celestica (CLS) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Benchmark Electronics (BHE) +12.9%, Flex (FLEX) +17.5%, Celestica (CLS) +61.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Celestica (CLS) has the highest net margin (Benchmark Electronics (BHE) 1.9%, Celestica (CLS) 6.8%). On return on invested capital, Celestica (CLS) leads (Benchmark Electronics (BHE) 5.0%, Celestica (CLS) 25.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Benchmark Electronics (BHE) returned the most: Benchmark Electronics (BHE) +71.9%, Flex (FLEX) +44.8%, Celestica (CLS) -8.1%. Over five years, Celestica (CLS) compounded fastest (Benchmark Electronics (BHE) +25.8%/yr, Flex (FLEX) +48.9%/yr, Celestica (CLS) +98.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Benchmark Electronics (BHE) has been the steadiest (Benchmark Electronics (BHE) 45.8%, Flex (FLEX) 69.9%, Celestica (CLS) 79.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, BHE, FLEX and CLS?

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