FERG vs NWPX vs WSO Stock Comparison

Ferguson Enterprises, NWPX Infrastructure and Watsco Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
WSO Watsco Inc
$303.13 +0.8% 1M -17.7% 1Y
Market cap
$10.79B
P/E
26.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$7.44B
Div. yield
4.26%
Industrial Distribution Industrials
1 win

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

NWPX Infrastructure leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (NWPX Infrastructure 8, Ferguson Enterprises 3, Watsco 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionFERGNWPXWSOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $46.68B $943.80M $10.79B FERG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 23.1x 17.7x 26.5x NWPX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.5x 18.9x 26.7x NWPX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.2% +15.9% +0.3% NWPX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 6.5% 8.9% — NWPX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 21.7% 12.5% — FERG
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.0x 0.2x — NWPX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 1.48% — 4.26% WSO
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -3.5% +76.0% -17.7% NWPX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +9.7%/yr +32.8%/yr +0.9%/yr NWPX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 30.1% 40.0% 35.4% FERG
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 66/100 80/100 62/100 NWPX

Percentile Scorecard

FERGNWPXWSO

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

AxisFERGNWPXWSO
Valuation 44 #26 of 46 100 #1 of 21 67 #16 of 46
Growth 79 #9 of 39 94 #2 of 19 34 #26 of 39
Profitability 87 #6 of 39 80 #4 of 16 66 #14 of 39
Financial Health 50 #24 of 47 70 #7 of 21 –
Shareholder Returns 70 #10 of 31 56 #5 of 10 80 #7 of 31
Overall 66 80 62
  • FERG ranked among 49 companies in Distribution and Rental
  • NWPX ranked among 22 companies in Environmental Equipment
  • WSO ranked among 49 companies in Distribution and Rental

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodFERGNWPXWSOSPY
1 month +7.4%-4.3%+0.8% +0.7%
3 months +6.2%-22.8%-2.5% +3.7%
6 months -10.2%-0.3%-30.8% +7.1%
Year to date +8.0%+56.8%-10.0% +12.8%
1 year -3.5%+76.0%-17.7% +11.9%
3 years +56.4%+253.8%-12.5% +85.2%
3 years, per year +16.1%+52.4%-4.3% +22.8%
5 years +59.0%+312.5%+4.7% +67.6%
5 years, per year +9.7%+32.8%+0.9% +10.9%
10 years +353.7%+647.0%+122.8% +262.0%
10 years, per year +16.3%+22.3%+8.3% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureFERGNWPXWSOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 30.1%40.0%35.4% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 30.9%34.4%36.6% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.121.300.98 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.111.90-0.50 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -43.6%-35.8%-50.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -10.2%-34.6%-33.6% -1.2%
52-week high $267.71$149.94$456.86 $779.14
52-week low $214.24$53.85$279.97 $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.

MultipleFERGNWPXWSO
P/E now vs peer median 23.1xmedian 26.2x 17.7xmedian 25.4x 26.5xmedian 26.2x
P/S now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 1.1x 1.6xmedian 2.5x 1.5xmedian 1.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.6xmedian 13.5x 10.3xmedian 17.9x —median 13.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 20.6xmedian 23.0x 10.9xmedian 22.3x 15.4xmedian 23.0x
P/B now vs peer median 7.9xmedian 2.6x 2.2xmedian 1.8x 3.1xmedian 2.6x
PEG now vs peer median —median 2.55 0.54median 1.73 -2.42median 2.55

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 monthsFERGNWPXWSO
Revenue $31.35B $602.76M $7.44B
Gross profit $9.73B $125.97M $2.02B
Operating income $2.82B $71.15M $675.29M
Net income $2.03B $53.48M $554.14M
Free cash flow $2.26B $86.83M –
EPS (diluted) $10.42 $5.45 $11.41
Cash & equivalents $820.00M $6.06M $498.70M
Total debt $4.13B $21.50M –
Shares (diluted) 194.80M 9.81M 38.19M
Enterprise value $43.90B $901.89M $11.29B

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
MetricFERGNWPXWSO
P/E 23.1x 17.7x 26.5x
P/FCF 20.6x 10.9x 15.4x
P/Operating cash flow 17.8x 8.8x 15.3x
P/S 1.5x 1.6x 1.5x
P/B 7.9x 2.2x 3.1x
P/Tangible book 8.9x 2.3x 3.1x
EV/EBITDA 15.6x 10.3x –
EV/EBIT 17.8x 13.5x –
EV/Revenue 1.6x 1.6x 1.5x
EV/FCF 22.1x 11.0x –
EV/Operating cash flow 19.1x 9.0x 15.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) – 0.54 -2.42

Growth

14 metrics
MetricFERGNWPXWSO
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.2% 15.9% 0.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) – 11.0% 0.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 7.5% 26.8% -2.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 16.2% 0.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 17.6% 47.2% -10.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 25.2% -6.4%
Net income growth (1Y) 31.6% 46.0% -10.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) – 31.4% -7.2%
EPS growth (1Y) 34.4% 46.1% -10.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) – 32.7% -11.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 35.9% 58.5% 28.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 43.1% 13.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 42.8% 80.1% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 92.6% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricFERGNWPXWSO
Gross margin 31.0% 20.9% –
EBITDA margin 10.2% 15.4% –
Operating margin 9.0% 11.8% –
Pretax margin 8.3% 11.4% –
Net margin 6.5% 8.9% –
FCF margin 7.2% 14.4% –
Operating cash flow margin 8.3% 17.7% 9.5%
Return on equity 34.0% 12.5% 15.8%
Return on assets 11.4% 7.9% 10.7%
Return on invested capital 21.7% 12.5% –
Return on capital employed 23.4% 12.9% –
Asset turnover 1.8x 0.9x 1.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 2.0x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% 1.2% 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricFERGNWPXWSO
Debt / assets 23.2% 3.1% –
Debt / equity 0.7x 0.0x –
Net debt / EBITDA 1.0x 0.2x –
Debt / FCF 1.8x 0.2x –
Liabilities / assets 67.0% 37.0% –
Equity / assets 33.0% 63.0% 67.6%
Interest coverage – 48.6x –
Current ratio 1.8x 2.6x 3.2x
Quick ratio 0.8x 1.8x –
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.0x –
Altman Z-score 5.52 4.40 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricFERGNWPXWSO
Dividend yield 1.5% – 4.3%
Net buyback yield 1.8% 0.7% –
Shareholder yield 3.3% 0.7% 4.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 92.7%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 11.4%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 11.4%

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.

ConsensusFERGNWPXWSO
Forward P/E 22.5xFY2026 18.9xFY2026 26.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $10.68FY2026 $5.19FY2026 $11.37FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +7.4%FY2026 +45.8%FY2026 -7.2%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +20.5% -7.5% +9.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $34.30BFY2026 $573.90MFY2026 $7.25BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +11.5%FY2026 +9.1%FY2026 +0.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -0.7% +3.8% +7.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersFERGNWPXWSO
Held by institutions 96.3% 89.5% 100.0%
Institutions holding 938 225 786
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.1% +4.6% -0.9%
Institutions buying 477 125 342
Institutions selling 344 65 305
Buyers to sellers 1.39 1.92 1.12

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.

FERGNWPXWSO
FERG 1.00 0.31 0.52
NWPX 0.31 1.00 0.22
WSO 0.52 0.22 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, FERG, NWPX and WSO?

Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) $46.68B, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) $943.80M, Watsco (WSO) $10.79B.

Which stock is cheaper, FERG, NWPX and WSO?

NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 23.1x, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) 17.7x, Watsco (WSO) 26.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) is cheapest (Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 22.5x, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) 18.9x, Watsco (WSO) 26.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) +5.2%, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) +15.9%, Watsco (WSO) +0.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) has the highest net margin (Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 6.5%, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) 8.9%). On return on invested capital, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) leads (Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 21.7%, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) 12.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) returned the most: Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) -3.5%, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) +76.0%, Watsco (WSO) -17.7%. Over five years, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) compounded fastest (Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) +9.7%/yr, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) +32.8%/yr, Watsco (WSO) +0.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Watsco (WSO) has the highest dividend yield: Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 1.48%, Watsco (WSO) 4.26%. NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) has been the steadiest (Ferguson Enterprises (FERG) 30.1%, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) 40.0%, Watsco (WSO) 35.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, FERG, NWPX and WSO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, NWPX Infrastructure (NWPX) leads on 8. 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.