EMR vs MSA vs IEX Stock Comparison

Emerson Electric, MSA Safety and Idex Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
1 more company in this comparison (IR) Create a free account to keep reading and compare up to 10 companies.
EMR Emerson Electric Co
$165.98 +2.7% 1M +18.9% 1Y
Market cap
$92.58B
P/E
36.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$18.64B
Div. yield
1.34%
Pumps and Valves Industrials
3 wins
MSA MSA Safety Inc
$187.05 +3.2% 1M +19.1% 1Y
Market cap
$7.22B
P/E
23.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.95B
Div. yield
1.14%
Power Tools Industrials
6 wins
IEX Idex Corp /De/
$236.53 +1.5% 1M +38.0% 1Y
Market cap
$17.37B
P/E
32.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.66B
Div. yield
1.23%
Pumps and Valves Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

MSA Safety leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (MSA Safety 6, Emerson Electric 3, Idex 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionEMRMSAIEXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $92.58B $7.22B $17.37B EMR
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 36.0x 23.0x 32.5x MSA
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 24.6x 20.0x 25.9x MSA
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +4.8% +6.5% +6.9% IEX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 13.8% 16.1% 14.6% MSA
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 10.9% 15.9% 10.0% MSA
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.8x 0.8x 1.2x MSA
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 1.34% 1.14% 1.23% EMR
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +18.9% +19.1% +38.0% IEX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +11.8%/yr +4.2%/yr +0.5%/yr EMR
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 32.0% 24.4% 22.0% IEX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 44/100 78/100 56/100 MSA

Percentile Scorecard

EMRMSAIEX

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

AxisEMRMSAIEX
Valuation 33 #137 of 203 58 #85 of 203 36 #130 of 203
Growth 40 #114 of 189 88 #24 of 189 43 #108 of 189
Profitability 84 #30 of 187 96 #9 of 187 88 #24 of 187
Financial Health 31 #154 of 221 76 #54 of 221 72 #62 of 221
Shareholder Returns 33 #102 of 152 72 #43 of 152 42 #89 of 152
Overall 44 78 56
  • EMR ranked among 223 companies in Machinery
  • MSA ranked among 223 companies in Machinery
  • IEX ranked among 223 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodEMRMSAIEXSPY
1 month +2.7%+3.2%+1.5% -2.3%
3 months +7.2%-2.8%+1.6% -0.7%
6 months +22.5%+13.2%+10.4% +4.8%
Year to date +25.1%+16.8%+32.9% +10.3%
1 year +18.9%+19.1%+38.0% +10.3%
3 years +80.5%+16.5%+21.2% +73.0%
3 years, per year +21.8%+5.2%+6.6% +20.1%
5 years +74.2%+22.6%+2.7% +61.9%
5 years, per year +11.8%+4.2%+0.5% +10.1%
10 years +231.7%+232.6%+178.4% +258.6%
10 years, per year +12.7%+12.8%+10.8% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureEMRMSAIEXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 32.0%24.4%22.0% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 33.7%21.6%19.9% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.550.740.69 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.590.781.73 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -29.9%-34.9%-35.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high -2.8%-7.9%-1.7% -3.5%
52-week high $170.76$203.08$240.52 $779.14
52-week low $123.30$152.94$161.68 $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.

MultipleEMRMSAIEX
P/E now vs peer median 36.0xmedian 25.6x 23.0xmedian 25.6x 32.5xmedian 25.6x
P/S now vs peer median 5.0xmedian 1.9x 3.7xmedian 1.9x 4.7xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 16.8xmedian 14.4x 15.6xmedian 14.4x 18.9xmedian 14.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 26.7xmedian 22.5x 20.4xmedian 22.5x 26.0xmedian 22.5x
P/B now vs peer median 4.5xmedian 2.2x 5.2xmedian 2.2x 4.3xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median -0.87median 1.36 0.12median 1.36 -8.54median 1.36

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 monthsEMRMSAIEX
Revenue $18.64B $1.95B $3.66B
Gross profit $9.91B $925.88M $1.64B
Operating income $4.68B $413.17M $763.90M
Net income $2.58B $314.01M $535.80M
Free cash flow $3.46B $354.30M $667.10M
R&D – $68.19M –
EPS (diluted) $4.59 $8.11 $7.24
Cash & equivalents $2.18B $200.06M $602.10M
Total debt $13.11B $599.74M $1.75B
Shares (diluted) 561.10M 38.70M 74.00M
Enterprise value $85.34B $6.51B $14.98B

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
MetricEMRMSAIEX
P/E 36.0x 23.0x 32.5x
P/FCF 26.7x 20.4x 26.0x
P/Operating cash flow 23.7x 17.8x 23.1x
P/S 5.0x 3.7x 4.7x
P/B 4.5x 5.2x 4.3x
P/Tangible book 7.9x 6.5x 6.0x
EV/EBITDA 16.8x 15.6x 18.9x
EV/EBIT 22.1x 18.4x 24.2x
EV/Revenue 5.6x 3.9x 5.1x
EV/FCF 29.9x 21.5x 27.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 26.4x 18.8x 24.6x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.87 0.12 -8.54

Growth

14 metrics
MetricEMRMSAIEX
Revenue growth (1Y) 4.8% 6.5% 6.9%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.6% 5.2% 3.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 5.7% 8.2% 8.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 11.0% 6.7% 4.1%
Operating income growth (1Y) 9.2% 10.8% 12.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 13.6% 34.5% 0.7%
Net income growth (1Y) -3.0% 13.4% 12.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -42.0% 186.8% -4.6%
EPS growth (1Y) -2.2% 15.3% 13.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -41.6% 188.5% -3.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 4.4% 26.3% 17.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 10.1% 96.0% 3.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 4.4% 40.3% 14.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 9.4% 72.1% 3.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricEMRMSAIEX
Gross margin 53.2% 47.6% 44.9%
EBITDA margin 33.1% 25.1% 26.7%
Operating margin 25.1% 21.2% 20.9%
Pretax margin 17.6% 21.1% 19.2%
Net margin 13.8% 16.1% 14.6%
FCF margin 18.6% 18.2% 18.2%
Operating cash flow margin 21.0% 20.9% 20.6%
Return on equity 12.7% 22.8% 13.4%
Return on assets 6.1% 12.2% 7.8%
Return on invested capital 10.9% 15.9% 10.0%
Return on capital employed 14.9% 18.0% 12.2%
Asset turnover 0.4x 0.8x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.5x 1.3x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 1.3% 1.0% 0.9%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricEMRMSAIEX
Debt / assets 31.1% 23.1% 25.5%
Debt / equity 0.6x 0.4x 0.4x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.8x 0.8x 1.2x
Debt / FCF 3.8x 1.7x 2.6x
Liabilities / assets 51.7% 46.1% 41.6%
Equity / assets 48.3% 53.9% 58.4%
Interest coverage – 12.7x –
Current ratio 0.9x 3.2x 2.8x
Quick ratio 0.5x 1.9x 1.8x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.7x 0.9x
Altman Z-score 4.70 6.08 5.70

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricEMRMSAIEX
Dividend yield 1.3% 1.1% 1.2%
Net buyback yield 1.0% 1.7% 1.7%
Shareholder yield 2.3% 2.9% 3.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) 47.8% – 39.9%
Payout ratio (FCF) 35.6% – 32.1%
Dividend growth (1Y) 3.1% – 1.0%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 0.7% – 4.5%

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.

ConsensusEMRMSAIEX
Forward P/E 24.6xFY2026 20.0xFY2026 25.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $6.75FY2026 $9.33FY2026 $9.14FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +12.5%FY2026 +17.7%FY2026 +15.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +15.3% +3.4% +12.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $18.13BFY2026 $1.98BFY2026 $3.93BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +0.6%FY2026 +5.2%FY2026 +13.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +15.3% +19.6% +3.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersEMRMSAIEX
Held by institutions 82.1% 91.0% 100.0%
Institutions holding 2,293 457 688
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.9% +3.0% +0.1%
Institutions buying 1,082 236 352
Institutions selling 799 147 202
Buyers to sellers 1.35 1.61 1.74

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.

EMRMSAIEX
EMR 1.00 0.50 0.63
MSA 0.50 1.00 0.43
IEX 0.63 0.43 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, EMR, MSA and IEX?

Emerson Electric (EMR) is the largest by market capitalisation: Emerson Electric (EMR) $92.58B, MSA Safety (MSA) $7.22B, Idex (IEX) $17.37B.

Which stock is cheaper, EMR, MSA and IEX?

MSA Safety (MSA) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Emerson Electric (EMR) 36.0x, MSA Safety (MSA) 23.0x, Idex (IEX) 32.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, MSA Safety (MSA) is cheapest (Emerson Electric (EMR) 24.6x, MSA Safety (MSA) 20.0x, Idex (IEX) 25.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Idex (IEX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Emerson Electric (EMR) +4.8%, MSA Safety (MSA) +6.5%, Idex (IEX) +6.9%.

Which company is more profitable?

MSA Safety (MSA) has the highest net margin (Emerson Electric (EMR) 13.8%, MSA Safety (MSA) 16.1%, Idex (IEX) 14.6%). On return on invested capital, MSA Safety (MSA) leads (Emerson Electric (EMR) 10.9%, MSA Safety (MSA) 15.9%, Idex (IEX) 10.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Idex (IEX) returned the most: Emerson Electric (EMR) +18.9%, MSA Safety (MSA) +19.1%, Idex (IEX) +38.0%. Over five years, Emerson Electric (EMR) compounded fastest (Emerson Electric (EMR) +11.8%/yr, MSA Safety (MSA) +4.2%/yr, Idex (IEX) +0.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Emerson Electric (EMR) has the highest dividend yield: Emerson Electric (EMR) 1.34%, MSA Safety (MSA) 1.14%, Idex (IEX) 1.23%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Idex (IEX) has been the steadiest (Emerson Electric (EMR) 32.0%, MSA Safety (MSA) 24.4%, Idex (IEX) 22.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, EMR, MSA and IEX?

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