ETN vs FSS vs ST Stock Comparison

Eaton, Federal Signal and Sensata Technologies Holding Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ETN Eaton Corp plc
$384.22 -12.7% 1M +1.2% 1Y
Market cap
$152.67B
P/E
39.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$30.03B
Div. yield
–
Electrical Equipment Industrials
2 wins
FSS Federal Signal Corp /De/
$115.92 +1.1% 1M -7.5% 1Y
Market cap
$6.85B
P/E
24.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.45B
Div. yield
0.01%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
6 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Federal Signal leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Federal Signal 6, Sensata Technologies Holding 3, Eaton 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionETNFSSSTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $152.67B $6.85B $5.97B ETN
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 39.9x 24.0x 16.3x ST
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 27.7x 23.6x 11.8x ST
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +15.5% +24.0% +4.1% FSS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 12.8% 11.7% 9.5% ETN
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 10.3% 15.3% 8.2% FSS
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.1x 0.8x 2.3x FSS
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +1.2% -7.5% +33.9% ST
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +18.4%/yr +22.1%/yr -5.2%/yr FSS
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.7% 35.0% 39.8% FSS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 45/100 75/100 63/100 FSS

Percentile Scorecard

ETNFSSST

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

AxisETNFSSST
Valuation 14 #175 of 203 51 #101 of 203 88 #26 of 203
Growth 73 #52 of 188 94 #13 of 188 71 #55 of 188
Profitability 75 #47 of 183 90 #20 of 183 70 #56 of 183
Financial Health 20 #174 of 217 75 #55 of 217 42 #127 of 217
Shareholder Returns 43 #88 of 153 65 #54 of 153 47 #82 of 153
Overall 45 75 63
  • ETN ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • FSS ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • ST ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodETNFSSSTSPY
1 month -12.7%+1.1%+0.3% -0.2%
3 months -0.5%-1.6%-9.5% +3.9%
6 months -7.0%+3.7%+1.9% +8.2%
Year to date +20.6%+6.8%+27.1% +12.9%
1 year +1.2%-7.5%+33.9% +12.3%
3 years +96.7%+102.4%+23.3% +87.4%
3 years, per year +25.3%+26.5%+7.2% +23.3%
5 years +132.9%+171.6%-23.3% +67.9%
5 years, per year +18.4%+22.1%-5.2% +10.9%
10 years +516.8%+848.6%+14.3% +261.1%
10 years, per year +20.0%+25.2%+1.3% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureETNFSSSTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.7%35.0%39.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 43.6%35.9%36.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.871.281.93 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.03-0.210.85 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -34.7%-33.3%-72.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -16.5%-13.3%-21.0% -1.2%
52-week high $459.94$133.73$53.55 $779.14
52-week low $315.82$104.77$28.53 $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.

MultipleETNFSSST
P/E now vs peer median 39.0xmedian 25.2x 24.7xmedian 25.2x 16.8xmedian 25.2x
P/S now vs peer median 5.0xmedian 1.9x 2.9xmedian 1.9x 1.6xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 26.0xmedian 14.0x 15.4xmedian 14.0x 10.0xmedian 14.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 37.9xmedian 21.7x 20.9xmedian 21.7x 9.6xmedian 21.7x
P/B now vs peer median 7.4xmedian 2.3x 4.7xmedian 2.3x 2.0xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median 2.94median 1.32 0.87median 1.32 2.45median 1.32

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 monthsETNFSSST
Revenue $30.03B $2.45B $3.85B
Gross profit $10.78B $714.00M $1.19B
Operating income $5.32B $395.40M $582.40M
Net income $3.83B $285.40M $366.60M
Free cash flow $3.93B $339.20M $641.20M
R&D $844.00M – $128.60M
EPS (diluted) $9.83 $4.64 $2.49
Cash & equivalents $483.00M $62.80M $553.40M
Total debt $20.61B $453.60M $2.40B
Shares (diluted) 389.50M 61.50M 147.00M
Enterprise value $149.86B $6.59B $3.80B

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
MetricETNFSSST
P/E 39.0x 24.7x 16.8x
P/FCF 37.9x 20.9x 9.6x
P/Operating cash flow 30.1x 19.0x 8.1x
P/S 5.0x 2.9x 1.6x
P/B 7.4x 4.7x 2.0x
P/Tangible book 19.4x 6.3x 2.3x
EV/EBITDA 26.0x 15.4x 10.0x
EV/EBIT 31.8x 18.9x 13.7x
EV/Revenue 5.6x 3.1x 2.1x
EV/FCF 43.0x 22.0x 12.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 34.2x 20.0x 10.5x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.94 0.87 2.45

Growth

14 metrics
MetricETNFSSST
Revenue growth (1Y) 15.5% 24.0% 4.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 10.8% 16.1% -1.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 8.7% 24.5% 11.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 12.3% 22.1% -3.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) 8.7% 27.8% 175.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 15.9% 28.8% 2.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -2.4% 28.8% 1,505%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 12.2% 28.6% 5.6%
EPS growth (1Y) -2.0% 28.4% 1,492%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 13.3% 28.6% 6.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 21.9% 45.6% 28.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 14.1% 59.2% 9.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 20.1% 49.8% 34.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 13.3% 73.3% 17.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricETNFSSST
Gross margin 35.9% 29.2% 30.8%
EBITDA margin 21.7% 19.8% 20.9%
Operating margin 17.7% 16.2% 15.1%
Pretax margin 16.1% 15.2% 12.4%
Net margin 12.8% 11.7% 9.5%
FCF margin 13.1% 13.9% 16.7%
Operating cash flow margin 16.5% 15.2% 19.7%
Return on equity 19.1% 19.4% 12.2%
Return on assets 6.9% 11.7% 5.5%
Return on invested capital 10.3% 15.3% 8.2%
Return on capital employed 12.2% 18.5% 10.0%
Asset turnover 0.5x 1.0x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 1.3x 2.1x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.6% 0.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricETNFSSST
Debt / assets 36.7% 18.6% 35.8%
Debt / equity 1.0x 0.3x 0.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 3.1x 0.8x 2.3x
Debt / FCF 5.2x 1.3x 3.7x
Liabilities / assets 63.9% 38.2% 54.1%
Equity / assets 36.1% 61.8% 45.9%
Interest coverage 12.0x 19.3x 4.4x
Current ratio 1.2x 2.7x 2.4x
Quick ratio 0.7x 1.1x 1.5x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.2x 0.7x
Altman Z-score 3.69 7.19 2.62

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricETNFSSST
Dividend yield 1.1% 0.5% 1.1%
Net buyback yield 0.3% 0.0% 0.4%
Shareholder yield 1.5% 0.5% 1.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 12.6% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 10.6% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 13.6% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 17.0% –

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.

ConsensusETNFSSST
Forward P/E 27.7xFY2026 23.6xFY2026 11.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $13.88FY2026 $4.92FY2026 $3.60FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +15.0%FY2026 +16.3%FY2026 +5.3%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +14.4% +10.0% +19.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $31.83BFY2026 $2.79BFY2026 $3.79BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +16.0%FY2026 +28.1%FY2026 +2.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +21.7% -5.3% +1.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersETNFSSST
Held by institutions 84.7% 100.0% 100.0%
Institutions holding 2,642 474 467
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.6% +3.9% +1.1%
Institutions buying 1,399 249 265
Institutions selling 892 152 149
Buyers to sellers 1.57 1.64 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.

ETNFSSST
ETN 1.00 0.42 0.65
FSS 0.42 1.00 0.46
ST 0.65 0.46 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ETN, FSS and ST?

Eaton (ETN) is the largest by market capitalisation: Eaton (ETN) $152.67B, Federal Signal (FSS) $6.85B, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) $5.97B.

Which stock is cheaper, ETN, FSS and ST?

Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Eaton (ETN) 39.9x, Federal Signal (FSS) 24.0x, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) 16.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) is cheapest (Eaton (ETN) 27.7x, Federal Signal (FSS) 23.6x, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) 11.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Federal Signal (FSS) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Eaton (ETN) +15.5%, Federal Signal (FSS) +24.0%, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) +4.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Eaton (ETN) has the highest net margin (Eaton (ETN) 12.8%, Federal Signal (FSS) 11.7%, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) 9.5%). On return on invested capital, Federal Signal (FSS) leads (Eaton (ETN) 10.3%, Federal Signal (FSS) 15.3%, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) 8.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) returned the most: Eaton (ETN) +1.2%, Federal Signal (FSS) -7.5%, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) +33.9%. Over five years, Federal Signal (FSS) compounded fastest (Eaton (ETN) +18.4%/yr, Federal Signal (FSS) +22.1%/yr, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) -5.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Eaton (ETN) 0.00%, Federal Signal (FSS) 0.01%, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) 0.00%. Eaton (ETN) and Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Federal Signal (FSS) has been the steadiest (Eaton (ETN) 40.7%, Federal Signal (FSS) 35.0%, Sensata Technologies Holding (ST) 39.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ETN, FSS and ST?

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