HD vs WMT vs LOW Stock Comparison

Home Depot, Walmart and Lowes Companies Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
HD Home Depot, Inc.
$319.37 +8.9% 1M -17.4% 1Y
Market cap
$316.90B
P/E
22.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$169.18B
Div. yield
0.03%
Home Improvement Retail Consumer Discretionary
2 wins
WMT Walmart Inc.
$120.29 +11.4% 1M +13.3% 1Y
Market cap
$948.79B
P/E
43.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$735.84B
Div. yield
0.01%
Discount Stores Consumer Staples
6 wins
LOW Lowes Companies Inc
$198.25 +4.8% 1M -18.3% 1Y
Market cap
$110.79B
P/E
16.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$90.43B
Div. yield
0.02%
Home Improvement Retail Consumer Discretionary
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Walmart leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Walmart 6, Lowes Companies 4, Home Depot 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionHDWMTLOWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $316.90B $948.79B $110.79B WMT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 22.3x 43.0x 16.7x LOW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.8x 38.9x 15.6x LOW
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +2.5% +6.2% +8.2% LOW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 8.4% 3.0% 7.3% HD
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 23.3% 16.1% 26.5% LOW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.0x 0.8x 2.7x WMT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.03% 0.01% 0.02% HD
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -17.4% +13.3% -18.3% WMT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -3.0%/yr +19.6%/yr -3.1%/yr WMT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 26.9% 26.6% 28.4% WMT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 40/100 48/100 47/100 WMT

Percentile Scorecard

HDWMTLOW

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

AxisHDWMTLOW
Valuation 20 #83 of 104 10 #36 of 40 48 #55 of 104
Growth 29 #71 of 99 43 #22 of 38 38 #62 of 99
Profitability 90 #11 of 99 80 #8 of 36 87 #14 of 99
Financial Health 31 #78 of 113 64 #15 of 40 23 #87 of 113
Shareholder Returns 32 #50 of 73 44 #16 of 28 38 #46 of 73
Overall 40 48 47
  • HD ranked among 115 companies in Retail
  • WMT ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail
  • LOW ranked among 115 companies in Retail

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodHDWMTLOWSPY
1 month +8.9%+11.4%+4.8% -0.8%
3 months -5.0%+7.7%-6.2% +3.5%
6 months -3.9%-5.7%-18.3% +7.0%
Year to date -7.2%+8.0%-17.8% +12.2%
1 year -17.4%+13.3%-18.3% +13.0%
3 years +15.5%+123.9%+8.0% +86.3%
3 years, per year +4.9%+30.9%+2.6% +23.1%
5 years -14.2%+144.6%-14.5% +68.6%
5 years, per year -3.0%+19.6%-3.1% +11.0%
10 years +160.3%+418.5%+194.3% +258.0%
10 years, per year +10.0%+17.9%+11.4% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureHDWMTLOWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 26.9%26.6%28.4% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 26.2%28.4%27.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.69-0.090.61 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.650.50-0.65 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -35.9%-26.0%-37.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -18.3%-10.4%-31.0% -1.8%
52-week high $391.05$134.20$287.39 $779.14
52-week low $281.12$100.61$179.47 $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.

MultipleHDWMTLOW
P/E now vs peer median 22.3xmedian 16.7x 43.3xmedian 22.0x 16.7xmedian 16.7x
P/S now vs peer median 1.9xmedian 0.5x 1.3xmedian 0.5x 1.2xmedian 0.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 14.6xmedian 9.0x 21.0xmedian 9.8x 11.4xmedian 9.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 21.1xmedian 16.5x 70.6xmedian 17.8x 15.9xmedian 16.5x
P/B now vs peer median 19.2xmedian 1.7x 9.1xmedian 3.0x -15.0xmedian 1.7x
PEG now vs peer median -5.47median 0.72 2.56median 1.18 3.54median 0.72

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 monthsHDWMTLOW
Revenue $169.18B $735.84B $90.43B
Gross profit $56.18B $185.66B $29.92B
Operating income $21.02B $32.28B $10.29B
Net income $14.23B $22.55B $6.64B
Free cash flow $15.10B $13.51B $7.00B
EPS (diluted) $14.28 $2.77 $11.86
Cash & equivalents $2.09B $11.53B $3.17B
Total debt $214.74B $50.41B $37.56B
Shares (diluted) 996.00M 7.98B 560.00M
Enterprise value $310.14B $905.23B $103.75B

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
MetricHDWMTLOW
P/E 22.3x 43.3x 16.7x
P/FCF 21.1x 70.6x 15.9x
P/Operating cash flow 17.0x 22.2x 12.0x
P/S 1.9x 1.3x 1.2x
P/B 19.2x 9.1x -15.0x
P/Tangible book 52.0x 9.1x -8.5x
EV/EBITDA 14.6x 21.0x 11.4x
EV/EBIT 17.6x 30.8x 14.1x
EV/Revenue 2.2x 1.3x 1.6x
EV/FCF 24.5x 73.5x 20.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 19.7x 23.1x 15.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -5.47 2.56 3.54

Growth

14 metrics
MetricHDWMTLOW
Revenue growth (1Y) 2.5% 6.2% 8.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 3.0% 5.3% -1.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 2.1% 7.6% 6.9%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 2.7% 6.7% -1.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) -2.7% 11.4% -0.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -3.0% 14.0% 1.6%
Net income growth (1Y) -2.7% 2.9% -3.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -4.3% 16.3% 3.2%
EPS growth (1Y) -2.9% 3.9% -3.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -4.1% 16.9% 4.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 5.1% 11.7% -5.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -1.5% 4.3% 2.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 6.1% -1.8% -8.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -2.5% -11.1% 1.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricHDWMTLOW
Gross margin 33.2% 25.2% 33.1%
EBITDA margin 15.0% 6.4% 14.1%
Operating margin 12.4% 4.4% 11.4%
Pretax margin 11.1% 4.0% 9.7%
Net margin 8.4% 3.0% 7.3%
FCF margin 8.9% 1.8% 7.7%
Operating cash flow margin 11.1% 5.8% 10.2%
Return on equity 93.3% 21.9% –
Return on assets 13.1% 7.7% 12.0%
Return on invested capital 23.3% 16.1% 26.5%
Return on capital employed 28.5% 18.3% 30.0%
Asset turnover 1.6x 2.5x 1.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 1.9x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% – 0.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricHDWMTLOW
Debt / assets 48.4% 17.2% 67.2%
Debt / equity 3.2x 0.5x -5.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.0x 0.8x 2.7x
Debt / FCF 3.5x 3.7x 5.4x
Liabilities / assets 84.8% 64.4% 113.3%
Equity / assets 15.2% 35.6% -13.3%
Interest coverage 8.7x 17.4x –
Current ratio 1.1x 0.8x 1.1x
Quick ratio 0.3x 0.2x 0.2x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.1x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 5.53 6.27 3.12

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricHDWMTLOW
Dividend yield 2.9% 0.8% 2.5%
Net buyback yield -0.1% 0.7% 0.3%
Shareholder yield 2.8% 1.6% 2.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) 64.8% 34.1% 40.5%
Payout ratio (FCF) 61.1% 57.0% 38.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) 2.0% 8.3% 3.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 4.4% 8.0% 1.6%

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.

ConsensusHDWMTLOW
Forward P/E 22.8xFY2026 38.9xFY2026 15.6xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $13.98FY2026 $3.09FY2026 $12.72FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -4.8%FY2026 +17.0%FY2026 +3.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +10.4% +1.6% -4.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $163.25BFY2026 $719.70BFY2026 $85.86BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -0.9%FY2026 +0.9%FY2026 -0.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +14.1% +6.5% +14.2%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersHDWMTLOW
Held by institutions 75.0% 37.2% 79.5%
Institutions holding 4,107 4,408 2,652
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.1% +6.2% +2.6%
Institutions buying 1,917 2,092 1,070
Institutions selling 1,766 1,838 1,189
Buyers to sellers 1.09 1.14 0.90

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.

HDWMTLOW
HD 1.00 0.33 0.89
WMT 0.33 1.00 0.34
LOW 0.89 0.34 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, HD, WMT and LOW?

Walmart (WMT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Home Depot (HD) $316.90B, Walmart (WMT) $948.79B, Lowes Companies (LOW) $110.79B.

Which stock is cheaper, HD, WMT and LOW?

Lowes Companies (LOW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Home Depot (HD) 22.3x, Walmart (WMT) 43.0x, Lowes Companies (LOW) 16.7x). On next year's consensus earnings, Lowes Companies (LOW) is cheapest (Home Depot (HD) 22.8x, Walmart (WMT) 38.9x, Lowes Companies (LOW) 15.6x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Lowes Companies (LOW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Home Depot (HD) +2.5%, Walmart (WMT) +6.2%, Lowes Companies (LOW) +8.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

Home Depot (HD) has the highest net margin (Home Depot (HD) 8.4%, Walmart (WMT) 3.0%, Lowes Companies (LOW) 7.3%). On return on invested capital, Lowes Companies (LOW) leads (Home Depot (HD) 23.3%, Walmart (WMT) 16.1%, Lowes Companies (LOW) 26.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Walmart (WMT) returned the most: Home Depot (HD) -17.4%, Walmart (WMT) +13.3%, Lowes Companies (LOW) -18.3%. Over five years, Walmart (WMT) compounded fastest (Home Depot (HD) -3.0%/yr, Walmart (WMT) +19.6%/yr, Lowes Companies (LOW) -3.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Home Depot (HD) has the highest dividend yield: Home Depot (HD) 0.03%, Walmart (WMT) 0.01%, Lowes Companies (LOW) 0.02%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Walmart (WMT) has been the steadiest (Home Depot (HD) 26.9%, Walmart (WMT) 26.6%, Lowes Companies (LOW) 28.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, HD, WMT and LOW?

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