DOW vs LYB vs CE Stock Comparison

Dow, LyondellBasell Industries and Celanese Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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DOW Dow Inc.
$33.99 +21.3% 1M +37.0% 1Y
Market cap
$24.60B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$42.61B
Div. yield
4.12%
Commodity Chemicals Basic Materials
4 wins
CE Celanese Corp
$48.10 +2.2% 1M +14.0% 1Y
Market cap
$5.28B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$9.71B
Div. yield
0.25%
Commodity Chemicals Basic Materials

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

LyondellBasell Industries leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (LyondellBasell Industries 7, Dow 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionDOWLYBCELeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $24.60B $43.50B $5.28B LYB
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -27.5x -123.2x -4.5x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 13.5x 7.2x 7.6x LYB
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +4.2% -1.7% -2.2% DOW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -2.1% -1.1% -12.0% LYB
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 2.0% 4.1% -4.1% LYB
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.9x 4.3x 63.7x DOW
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 4.12% 5.11% 0.25% LYB
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +37.0% +41.5% +14.0% LYB
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -9.5%/yr -6.5%/yr -21.7%/yr LYB
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 41.8% 42.8% 51.7% DOW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 52/100 39/100 29/100 DOW

Percentile Scorecard

DOWLYBCE

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

AxisDOWLYBCE
Valuation 81 #19 of 94 40 #57 of 94 58 #40 of 94
Growth 60 #37 of 92 24 #70 of 92 23 #71 of 92
Profitability 47 #48 of 89 53 #42 of 89 32 #61 of 89
Financial Health 32 #66 of 97 31 #67 of 97 13 #85 of 97
Shareholder Returns 39 #43 of 70 45 #39 of 70 22 #55 of 70
Overall 52 39 29
  • DOW ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • LYB ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • CE ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodDOWLYBCESPY
1 month +21.3%+15.8%+2.2% -0.8%
3 months +18.2%+14.8%+8.4% +3.5%
6 months -10.8%-5.2%-26.1% +7.0%
Year to date +45.4%+55.5%+13.8% +12.2%
1 year +37.0%+41.5%+14.0% +13.0%
3 years -29.3%-25.5%-57.6% +86.3%
3 years, per year -10.9%-9.4%-24.9% +23.1%
5 years -39.3%-28.7%-70.6% +68.6%
5 years, per year -9.5%-6.5%-21.7% +11.0%
10 years —-16.2%-32.4% +258.0%
10 years, per year —-1.8%-3.8% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureDOWLYBCESPY
Volatility, 1Y 41.8%42.8%51.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 38.1%40.8%47.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.33-0.590.40 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.880.970.27 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -70.8%-63.9%-79.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -18.8%-18.3%-30.5% -1.8%
52-week high $41.87$82.38$69.24 $779.14
52-week low $20.95$42.28$35.53 $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.

MultipleDOWLYBCE
P/E now vs peer median -27.5xmedian 21.6x -123.2xmedian 21.6x -4.5xmedian 21.6x
P/S now vs peer median 0.6xmedian 1.4x 1.4xmedian 1.4x 0.5xmedian 1.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 10.9xmedian 12.4x 22.4xmedian 12.4x 95.3xmedian 12.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 11.6xmedian 15.8x 27.6xmedian 15.8x 7.5xmedian 15.8x
P/B now vs peer median 1.4xmedian 1.6x 4.1xmedian 1.6x 1.2xmedian 1.6x
PEG now vs peer median 0.71median 1.66 4.18median 1.66 0.11median 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 monthsDOWLYBCE
Revenue $42.61B $31.19B $9.71B
Gross profit $4.73B $3.98B $2.03B
Operating income $720.00M $963.00M -$692.00M
Net income -$595.00M -$346.00M -$1.16B
Free cash flow $2.11B $1.58B $708.00M
R&D $741.00M $137.00M $120.00M
EPS (diluted) $-1.23 $-0.55 $-10.60
Cash & equivalents $4.14B $2.63B $1.36B
Total debt $17.54B $12.91B $12.01B
Shares (diluted) 727.40M 646.00M 110.25M
Enterprise value $10.04B $33.12B -$125.08M

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
MetricDOWLYBCE
P/E -27.5x -123.2x -4.5x
P/FCF 11.6x 27.6x 7.5x
P/Operating cash flow 5.4x 14.6x 5.4x
P/S 0.6x 1.4x 0.5x
P/B 1.4x 4.1x 1.2x
P/Tangible book 1.5x 4.2x 3.5x
EV/EBITDA 10.9x 22.4x 95.3x
EV/EBIT 52.8x 55.8x -23.0x
EV/Revenue 0.9x 1.7x 1.6x
EV/FCF 18.0x 34.1x 22.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.3x 18.1x 16.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.71 4.18 0.11

Growth

14 metrics
MetricDOWLYBCE
Revenue growth (1Y) 4.2% -1.7% -2.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -2.4% -10.2% -1.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 62.1% 15.6% -5.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -2.5% -6.3% -3.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) 685.4% 44.4% 11.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -30.9% -31.7% -39.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 40.6% -232.1% 29.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -34.3% -29.3% -42.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 21.6% -238.0% 29.0%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -38.7% -29.4% -42.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 190.9% 26.1% -3.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -6.5% -14.7% -16.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 279.8% 240.8% 12.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -13.8% -21.2% -13.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricDOWLYBCE
Gross margin 11.1% 12.8% 20.9%
EBITDA margin 8.2% 7.7% 1.7%
Operating margin 1.7% 3.1% -7.1%
Pretax margin -1.0% -0.2% -11.6%
Net margin -2.1% -1.1% -12.0%
FCF margin 5.0% 5.1% 7.3%
Operating cash flow margin 10.8% 9.5% 10.1%
Return on equity -3.4% -3.3% -25.4%
Return on assets -1.0% -1.0% -5.3%
Return on invested capital 2.0% 4.1% -4.1%
Return on capital employed 1.4% 3.6% -3.9%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.9x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -7.7x -8.6x -0.8x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.3% 0.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricDOWLYBCE
Debt / assets 28.8% 37.4% 56.1%
Debt / equity 1.0x 1.2x 2.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 3.9x 4.3x 63.7x
Debt / FCF 8.3x 8.2x 17.0x
Liabilities / assets 71.1% 69.0% 78.6%
Equity / assets 28.9% 31.0% 21.4%
Interest coverage 0.8x 1.8x -1.0x
Current ratio 1.8x 1.6x 1.4x
Quick ratio 1.0x 0.9x 0.8x
Cash ratio 0.4x 0.4x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 1.63 2.54 1.29

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricDOWLYBCE
Dividend yield 4.1% 5.1% 0.2%
Net buyback yield – – –
Shareholder yield 4.1% 5.1% 0.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) -169.6% -385.5% -1.1%
Payout ratio (FCF) 47.7% 84.5% 1.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) -41.7% -23.9% -91.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -20.1% -5.5% -65.0%

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.

ConsensusDOWLYBCE
Forward P/E 13.5xFY2026 7.2xFY2026 7.6xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.52FY2026 $9.38FY2026 $6.33FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +451.8%FY2026 +59.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -36.1% -30.4% -0.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $41.04BFY2026 $32.40BFY2026 $9.75BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +2.7%FY2026 +7.5%FY2026 +2.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.5% +0.6% +7.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersDOWLYBCE
Held by institutions 77.8% 37.4% 100.0%
Institutions holding 1,208 878 458
Change in shares held, QoQ +9.9% -1.9% +10.8%
Institutions buying 548 469 246
Institutions selling 451 297 138
Buyers to sellers 1.22 1.58 1.78

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.

DOWLYBCE
DOW 1.00 0.90 0.70
LYB 0.90 1.00 0.65
CE 0.70 0.65 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, DOW, LYB and CE?

LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) is the largest by market capitalisation: Dow (DOW) $24.60B, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) $43.50B, Celanese (CE) $5.28B.

Which company is growing faster?

Dow (DOW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Dow (DOW) +4.2%, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) -1.7%, Celanese (CE) -2.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) has the highest net margin (Dow (DOW) -2.1%, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) -1.1%, Celanese (CE) -12.0%). On return on invested capital, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) leads (Dow (DOW) 2.0%, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) 4.1%, Celanese (CE) -4.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) returned the most: Dow (DOW) +37.0%, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) +41.5%, Celanese (CE) +14.0%. Over five years, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) compounded fastest (Dow (DOW) -9.5%/yr, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) -6.5%/yr, Celanese (CE) -21.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) has the highest dividend yield: Dow (DOW) 4.12%, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) 5.11%, Celanese (CE) 0.25%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Dow (DOW) has been the steadiest (Dow (DOW) 41.8%, LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) 42.8%, Celanese (CE) 51.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, DOW, LYB and CE?

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