DOW vs ESI vs PPG Stock Comparison

Dow, Element Solutions and Ppg Industries Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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DOW Dow Inc.
$33.78 +20.6% 1M +31.3% 1Y
Market cap
$24.45B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$42.61B
Div. yield
4.14%
Commodity Chemicals Basic Materials
2 wins
ESI Element Solutions Inc
$35.02 -1.9% 1M +32.3% 1Y
Market cap
$8.50B
P/E
41.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.49B
Div. yield
0.91%
Specialty Chemicals Basic Materials
6 wins
PPG Ppg Industries Inc
$113.55 +5.6% 1M +7.7% 1Y
Market cap
$25.24B
P/E
16.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$16.69B
Div. yield
2.53%
Paints and Coatings Basic Materials
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Element Solutions leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Element Solutions 6, Ppg Industries 4, Dow 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionDOWESIPPGLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $24.45B $8.50B $25.24B PPG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -27.3x 41.6x 16.1x PPG
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 12.7x 20.4x 13.9x DOW
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +4.2% +39.6% +6.4% ESI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -2.1% 5.9% — ESI
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 2.0% 5.4% — ESI
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.9x 3.2x — ESI
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 4.14% 0.91% 2.53% DOW
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +31.3% +32.3% +7.7% ESI
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -9.8%/yr +9.1%/yr -7.0%/yr ESI
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 41.8% 46.9% 30.7% PPG
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 53/100 51/100 70/100 PPG

Percentile Scorecard

DOWESIPPG

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

AxisDOWESIPPG
Valuation 82 #18 of 94 39 #58 of 94 68 #31 of 94
Growth 60 #37 of 91 77 #22 of 91 74 #24 of 91
Profitability 51 #43 of 86 61 #34 of 86 –
Financial Health 33 #64 of 95 48 #50 of 95 –
Shareholder Returns 41 #42 of 70 30 #49 of 70 68 #23 of 70
Overall 53 51 70
  • DOW ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • ESI ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • PPG ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodDOWESIPPGSPY
1 month +20.6%-1.9%+5.6% -0.2%
3 months +17.0%-4.1%-4.6% +3.9%
6 months -11.1%-9.7%+5.5% +8.2%
Year to date +44.5%+40.1%+10.8% +12.9%
1 year +31.3%+32.3%+7.7% +12.3%
3 years -29.8%+94.6%-5.9% +87.4%
3 years, per year -11.1%+24.9%-2.0% +23.3%
5 years -40.3%+54.3%-30.3% +67.9%
5 years, per year -9.8%+9.1%-7.0% +10.9%
10 years —+365.1%+21.6% +261.1%
10 years, per year —+16.6%+2.0% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureDOWESIPPGSPY
Volatility, 1Y 41.8%46.9%30.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 38.0%47.4%31.3% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.332.181.05 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.750.690.25 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -70.8%-40.3%-47.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -19.3%-28.7%-13.7% -1.2%
52-week high $41.87$49.09$131.56 $779.14
52-week low $20.95$22.99$94.34 $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.

MultipleDOWESIPPG
P/E now vs peer median -27.3xmedian 22.0x 41.6xmedian 22.0x 16.1xmedian 22.0x
P/S now vs peer median 0.6xmedian 1.4x 2.4xmedian 1.4x 1.5xmedian 1.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 10.9xmedian 12.4x 17.9xmedian 12.4x —median 12.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 11.6xmedian 15.1x 46.5xmedian 15.1x 16.7xmedian 15.1x
P/B now vs peer median 1.4xmedian 1.6x 2.9xmedian 1.6x —median 1.6x
PEG now vs peer median 0.71median 1.66 0.75median 1.66 2.93median 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 monthsDOWESIPPG
Revenue $42.61B $3.49B $16.69B
Gross profit $4.73B $1.28B –
Operating income $720.00M $408.70M –
Net income -$595.00M $205.20M –
Free cash flow $2.11B $182.90M –
R&D $741.00M $80.00M $458.00M
EPS (diluted) $-1.23 $0.84 $7.01
Cash & equivalents $4.14B $224.90M $1.59B
Total debt $17.54B $2.08B –
Shares (diluted) 727.40M 243.70M 223.90M
Enterprise value $9.89B $7.29B $25.24B

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
MetricDOWESIPPG
P/E -27.3x 41.6x 16.1x
P/FCF 11.6x 46.5x 16.7x
P/Operating cash flow 5.3x 30.0x 12.3x
P/S 0.6x 2.4x 1.5x
P/B 1.4x 2.9x –
P/Tangible book 1.5x 4.5x –
EV/EBITDA 10.9x 17.9x –
EV/EBIT 52.6x 25.3x –
EV/Revenue 0.9x 3.0x 1.5x
EV/FCF 17.9x 56.6x –
EV/Operating cash flow 8.2x 36.5x 12.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.71 0.75 2.93

Growth

14 metrics
MetricDOWESIPPG
Revenue growth (1Y) 4.2% 39.6% 6.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -2.4% 14.4% 1.3%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 62.1% 21.5% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -2.5% 11.7% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 685.4% 17.6% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -30.9% 31.9% –
Net income growth (1Y) 40.6% -14.4% –
Net income CAGR (3Y) -34.3% 56.0% –
EPS growth (1Y) 21.6% -15.0% 59.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -38.7% 55.8% 5.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 190.9% -16.0% 46.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -6.5% -4.2% -1.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 279.8% -32.2% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -13.8% -12.3% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricDOWESIPPG
Gross margin 11.1% 36.6% –
EBITDA margin 8.2% 16.6% –
Operating margin 1.7% 11.7% –
Pretax margin -1.0% 9.0% –
Net margin -2.1% 5.9% –
FCF margin 5.0% 5.2% –
Operating cash flow margin 10.8% 8.1% 12.3%
Return on equity -3.4% 7.2% –
Return on assets -1.0% 3.5% –
Return on invested capital 2.0% 5.4% –
Return on capital employed 1.4% 7.8% –
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.6x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -7.7x 1.4x –
Stock comp / revenue – 2.4% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricDOWESIPPG
Debt / assets 28.8% 35.5% –
Debt / equity 1.0x 0.7x –
Net debt / EBITDA 3.9x 3.2x –
Debt / FCF 8.3x 11.4x –
Liabilities / assets 71.1% 50.7% –
Equity / assets 28.9% 49.3% –
Interest coverage 0.8x – –
Current ratio 1.8x 2.8x 1.6x
Quick ratio 1.0x 1.7x –
Cash ratio 0.4x 0.4x –
Altman Z-score 1.63 2.56 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricDOWESIPPG
Dividend yield 4.1% 0.9% 2.5%
Net buyback yield – 0.5% –
Shareholder yield 4.1% 1.4% 2.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) -169.6% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 47.7% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) -41.7% – 2.4%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -20.1% – 2.9%

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.

ConsensusDOWESIPPG
Forward P/E 12.7xFY2026 20.4xFY2026 13.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.67FY2026 $1.72FY2026 $8.18FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +15.4%FY2026 +7.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -33.3% +33.7% +10.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $41.26BFY2026 $3.86BFY2026 $17.59BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +3.2%FY2026 +51.4%FY2026 +10.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.6% +2.3% -6.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersDOWESIPPG
Held by institutions 77.8% 100.0% 90.3%
Institutions holding 1,208 499 1,095
Change in shares held, QoQ +9.9% +0.6% +0.1%
Institutions buying 548 269 519
Institutions selling 451 176 356
Buyers to sellers 1.22 1.53 1.46

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.

DOWESIPPG
DOW 1.00 -0.02 -0.08
ESI -0.02 1.00 0.36
PPG -0.08 0.36 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, DOW, ESI and PPG?

Ppg Industries (PPG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Dow (DOW) $24.45B, Element Solutions (ESI) $8.50B, Ppg Industries (PPG) $25.24B.

Which stock is cheaper, DOW, ESI and PPG?

Ppg Industries (PPG) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Dow (DOW) -27.3x, Element Solutions (ESI) 41.6x, Ppg Industries (PPG) 16.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, Dow (DOW) is cheapest (Dow (DOW) 12.7x, Element Solutions (ESI) 20.4x, Ppg Industries (PPG) 13.9x). 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: Dow (DOW) +4.2%, Element Solutions (ESI) +39.6%, Ppg Industries (PPG) +6.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Element Solutions (ESI) has the highest net margin (Dow (DOW) -2.1%, Element Solutions (ESI) 5.9%). On return on invested capital, Element Solutions (ESI) leads (Dow (DOW) 2.0%, Element Solutions (ESI) 5.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Element Solutions (ESI) returned the most: Dow (DOW) +31.3%, Element Solutions (ESI) +32.3%, Ppg Industries (PPG) +7.7%. Over five years, Element Solutions (ESI) compounded fastest (Dow (DOW) -9.8%/yr, Element Solutions (ESI) +9.1%/yr, Ppg Industries (PPG) -7.0%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Dow (DOW) has the highest dividend yield: Dow (DOW) 4.14%, Element Solutions (ESI) 0.91%, Ppg Industries (PPG) 2.53%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ppg Industries (PPG) has been the steadiest (Dow (DOW) 41.8%, Element Solutions (ESI) 46.9%, Ppg Industries (PPG) 30.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, DOW, ESI and PPG?

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