IMAX vs ITW vs MCS Stock Comparison

Imax, Illinois Tool Works and Marcus Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
IMAX Imax Corp
$52.10 -7.1% 1M +64.4% 1Y
Market cap
$2.88B
P/E
70.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$416.08M
Div. yield
–
Industrial Machinery Industrials
4 wins
ITW Illinois Tool Works Inc
$276.01 +0.7% 1M +12.3% 1Y
Market cap
$78.95B
P/E
24.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$16.47B
Div. yield
0.02%
Industrial Machinery Industrials
5 wins
MCS Marcus Corp
$27.90 -0.6% 1M +108.4% 1Y
Market cap
$867.44M
P/E
38.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$789.80M
Div. yield
–
Movie Theaters Communication Services
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Illinois Tool Works leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Illinois Tool Works 5, Imax 4, Marcus 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionIMAXITWMCSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $2.88B $78.95B $867.44M ITW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 70.4x 24.7x 38.3x ITW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.8x 25.9x 30.3x IMAX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +14.8% +4.3% +1.8% IMAX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 9.8% 19.4% 2.9% ITW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 13.2% 27.1% 5.0% ITW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -0.8x 1.9x 1.2x IMAX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.02% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +64.4% +12.3% +108.4% MCS
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +20.3%/yr +4.4%/yr +8.5%/yr IMAX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 42.8% 21.3% 37.5% ITW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 62/100 48/100 64/100 MCS

Percentile Scorecard

IMAXITWMCS

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

AxisIMAXITWMCS
Valuation 37 #128 of 203 26 #150 of 203 100 #1 of 13
Growth 92 #16 of 187 33 #125 of 187 30 #8 of 11
Profitability 83 #33 of 185 100 #2 of 185 60 #5 of 11
Financial Health 84 #37 of 219 23 #170 of 219 67 #5 of 13
Shareholder Returns 15 #131 of 153 59 #63 of 153 –
Overall 62 48 64
  • IMAX ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • ITW ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • MCS ranked among 13 companies in Live Venues

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodIMAXITWMCSSPY
1 month -7.1%+0.7%-0.6% -0.8%
3 months +15.5%-3.0%+14.0% +3.5%
6 months +40.4%+2.3%+45.6% +7.0%
Year to date +41.0%+12.1%+79.9% +12.2%
1 year +64.4%+12.3%+108.4% +13.0%
3 years +190.4%+23.6%+83.6% +86.3%
3 years, per year +42.7%+7.3%+22.5% +23.1%
5 years +151.8%+24.2%+50.4% +68.6%
5 years, per year +20.3%+4.4%+8.5% +11.0%
10 years +68.7%+143.4%+11.9% +258.0%
10 years, per year +5.4%+9.3%+1.1% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureIMAXITWMCSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 42.8%21.3%37.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 35.9%20.8%29.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.130.470.53 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.500.582.89 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -42.3%-28.9%-53.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.5%-7.9%-10.4% -1.8%
52-week high $56.35$299.60$31.13 $779.14
52-week low $32.22$241.07$13.06 $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.

MultipleIMAXITWMCS
P/E now vs peer median 70.0xmedian 26.0x 24.7xmedian 26.0x 37.8xmedian 50.6x
P/S now vs peer median 6.9xmedian 1.9x 4.8xmedian 1.9x 1.1xmedian 1.3x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 18.4xmedian 14.0x 18.4xmedian 14.0x 9.5xmedian 17.8x
P/FCF now vs peer median 22.6xmedian 21.4x 26.9xmedian 21.4x 12.9xmedian 17.3x
P/B now vs peer median 6.4xmedian 2.2x 27.2xmedian 2.2x 1.9xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 0.65median 1.26 8.37median 1.26 0.24median 0.26

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 monthsIMAXITWMCS
Revenue $416.08M $16.47B $789.80M
Gross profit $248.12M $7.27B $352.87M
Operating income $83.87M $4.36B $32.28M
Net income $47.12M $3.19B $22.68M
Free cash flow $126.59M $2.92B $66.69M
R&D $6.42M – –
EPS (diluted) $0.72 $11.13 $0.73
Cash & equivalents $159.92M $839.00M $26.35M
Total debt $38.84M $9.69B $149.12M
Shares (diluted) 56.57M 287.00M 31.05M
Enterprise value $2.28B $75.51B $799.03M

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
MetricIMAXITWMCS
P/E 70.0x 24.7x 37.8x
P/FCF 22.6x 26.9x 12.9x
P/Operating cash flow 21.5x 23.6x 6.8x
P/S 6.9x 4.8x 1.1x
P/B 6.4x 27.2x 1.9x
P/Tangible book 6.8x 33.6x 1.9x
EV/EBITDA 18.4x 18.4x 9.5x
EV/EBIT 32.6x 20.0x 30.4x
EV/Revenue 6.6x 5.3x 1.2x
EV/FCF 21.6x 29.9x 14.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 20.6x 26.3x 7.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.65 8.37 0.24

Growth

14 metrics
MetricIMAXITWMCS
Revenue growth (1Y) 14.8% 4.3% 1.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.8% 0.8% 3.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 20.4% 5.3% 3.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 9.6% 2.7% 4.9%
Operating income growth (1Y) 39.8% 6.4% 39.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 42.6% 3.4% 21.4%
Net income growth (1Y) 10.6% -5.1% 53.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 79.6% 1.0% 136.2%
EPS growth (1Y) 21.7% -3.1% 55.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 107.7% 3.0% 155.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 72.7% 5.8% 59.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 40.0% 3.1% 14.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 88.4% 7.2% 1,593%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 44.5% 4.1% 10.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricIMAXITWMCS
Gross margin 59.6% 44.2% 44.7%
EBITDA margin 35.7% 28.9% 13.0%
Operating margin 20.2% 26.5% 4.1%
Pretax margin 15.0% 25.0% 3.0%
Net margin 9.8% 19.4% 2.9%
FCF margin 30.4% 17.7% 8.4%
Operating cash flow margin 31.9% 20.2% 16.0%
Return on equity 10.7% 104.3% 5.1%
Return on assets 5.2% 19.5% 2.3%
Return on invested capital 13.2% 27.1% 5.0%
Return on capital employed – 41.9% 3.9%
Asset turnover 0.5x 1.0x 0.8x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.8x 1.0x 5.6x
Stock comp / revenue 6.5% 0.4% 1.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricIMAXITWMCS
Debt / assets 4.2% 58.8% 14.9%
Debt / equity 0.1x 3.3x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA -0.8x 1.9x 1.2x
Debt / FCF 0.3x 3.3x 2.2x
Liabilities / assets 51.0% 82.4% 54.3%
Equity / assets 49.0% 17.6% 45.7%
Interest coverage 11.2x 14.5x 2.9x
Current ratio – 1.1x 0.4x
Quick ratio – 0.7x 0.3x
Cash ratio – 0.1x 0.2x
Altman Z-score – 8.00 2.10

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricIMAXITWMCS
Dividend yield – 2.4% 1.2%
Net buyback yield -0.6% 2.3% 1.6%
Shareholder yield -0.6% 4.7% 2.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 57.4% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 62.8% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 5.5% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 5.1% –

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.

ConsensusIMAXITWMCS
Forward P/E 22.8xFY2026 25.9xFY2026 30.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.29FY2026 $10.67FY2026 $0.92FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +57.9%FY2026 +1.7%FY2026 +124.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +4.4% +19.3% +8.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $497.98MFY2026 $16.46BFY2026 $798.11MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +21.4%FY2026 +2.6%FY2026 +5.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -5.7% +11.4% +9.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersIMAXITWMCS
Held by institutions 91.5% 84.9% 66.6%
Institutions holding 257 1,969 138
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.5% +0.8% +4.9%
Institutions buying 144 846 69
Institutions selling 69 750 38
Buyers to sellers 2.09 1.13 1.82

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.

IMAXITWMCS
IMAX 1.00 0.09 0.21
ITW 0.09 1.00 0.09
MCS 0.21 0.09 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, IMAX, ITW and MCS?

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Imax (IMAX) $2.88B, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) $78.95B, Marcus (MCS) $867.44M.

Which stock is cheaper, IMAX, ITW and MCS?

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Imax (IMAX) 70.4x, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 24.7x, Marcus (MCS) 38.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Imax (IMAX) is cheapest (Imax (IMAX) 22.8x, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 25.9x, Marcus (MCS) 30.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Imax (IMAX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Imax (IMAX) +14.8%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) +4.3%, Marcus (MCS) +1.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) has the highest net margin (Imax (IMAX) 9.8%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 19.4%, Marcus (MCS) 2.9%). On return on invested capital, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) leads (Imax (IMAX) 13.2%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 27.1%, Marcus (MCS) 5.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Marcus (MCS) returned the most: Imax (IMAX) +64.4%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) +12.3%, Marcus (MCS) +108.4%. Over five years, Imax (IMAX) compounded fastest (Imax (IMAX) +20.3%/yr, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) +4.4%/yr, Marcus (MCS) +8.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Imax (IMAX) 0.00%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 0.02%, Marcus (MCS) 0.00%. Imax (IMAX) and Marcus (MCS) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) has been the steadiest (Imax (IMAX) 42.8%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 21.3%, Marcus (MCS) 37.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, IMAX, ITW and MCS?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) leads on 5. 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.