IPGP vs AME vs NDSN Stock Comparison

Ipg Photonics, Ametek and Nordson Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
IPGP Ipg Photonics Corp
$72.81 -6.8% 1M -15.9% 1Y
Market cap
$3.16B
P/E
114.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.07B
Div. yield
–
Industrial Machinery Industrials
1 win
AME Ametek Inc/
$242.89 -3.3% 1M +29.8% 1Y
Market cap
$56.47B
P/E
35.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$7.86B
Div. yield
0.01%
Industrial Machinery Industrials
5 wins
NDSN Nordson Corp
$321.98 -1.2% 1M +36.5% 1Y
Market cap
$18.07B
P/E
32.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.98B
Div. yield
0.01%
Industrial Machinery Industrials
6 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Nordson leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Nordson 6, Ametek 5, Ipg Photonics 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionIPGPAMENDSNLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $3.16B $56.47B $18.07B AME
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 114.7x 35.8x 32.6x NDSN
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 69.3x 29.6x 28.9x NDSN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +13.0% +12.7% +7.0% IPGP
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.6% 20.0% 18.6% AME
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 12.8% 13.1% NDSN
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 0.6x 1.7x AME
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.01% NDSN
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -15.9% +29.8% +36.5% NDSN
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -14.3%/yr +13.3%/yr +5.3%/yr AME
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 72.1% 23.9% 22.2% NDSN
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 59/100 62/100 58/100 AME

Percentile Scorecard

IPGPAMENDSN

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

AxisIPGPAMENDSN
Valuation 40 #123 of 203 17 #168 of 203 30 #143 of 203
Growth 31 #129 of 187 63 #70 of 187 57 #82 of 187
Profitability 32 #127 of 185 92 #15 of 185 96 #8 of 185
Financial Health 96 #9 of 219 69 #69 of 219 54 #101 of 219
Shareholder Returns 94 #10 of 153 70 #46 of 153 53 #73 of 153
Overall 59 62 58
  • IPGP ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • AME ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • NDSN ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodIPGPAMENDSNSPY
1 month -6.8%-3.3%-1.2% -0.8%
3 months -18.8%-0.1%+8.3% +3.5%
6 months -37.6%+4.3%+13.6% +7.0%
Year to date +1.7%+18.3%+33.9% +12.2%
1 year -15.9%+29.8%+36.5% +13.0%
3 years -17.4%+74.5%+51.8% +86.3%
3 years, per year -6.2%+20.4%+14.9% +23.1%
5 years -53.6%+87.0%+29.2% +68.6%
5 years, per year -14.3%+13.3%+5.3% +11.0%
10 years -14.2%+441.8%+220.9% +258.0%
10 years, per year -1.5%+18.4%+12.4% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureIPGPAMENDSNSPY
Volatility, 1Y 72.1%23.9%22.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 77.3%22.8%21.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.140.970.88 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.221.251.64 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -72.0%-27.3%-39.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high -52.7%-6.1%-3.8% -1.8%
52-week high $153.91$258.54$334.70 $779.14
52-week low $69.41$184.19$226.69 $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.

MultipleIPGPAMENDSN
P/E now vs peer median 112.2xmedian 26.0x 35.3xmedian 26.0x 32.3xmedian 26.0x
P/S now vs peer median 2.9xmedian 1.9x 7.1xmedian 1.9x 6.0xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 29.6xmedian 14.0x 23.3xmedian 14.0x 21.1xmedian 14.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 148.9xmedian 21.4x 30.5xmedian 21.4x 24.8xmedian 21.4x
P/B now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 2.2x 4.9xmedian 2.2x 5.5xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median -3.30median 1.26 4.06median 1.26 7.34median 1.26

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 monthsIPGPAMENDSN
Revenue $1.07B $7.86B $2.98B
Gross profit $410.10M $2.86B $1.65B
Operating income $7.97M $2.04B $800.96M
Net income $27.56M $1.58B $555.18M
Free cash flow $20.80M $1.82B $724.01M
R&D $123.44M – –
EPS (diluted) $0.64 $6.86 $9.91
Cash & equivalents $399.23M $495.45M $113.43M
Total debt – $2.04B $1.73B
Shares (diluted) 42.91M 229.86M 56.03M
Enterprise value -$233.71M $54.59B $17.63B

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
MetricIPGPAMENDSN
P/E 112.2x 35.3x 32.3x
P/FCF 148.9x 30.5x 24.8x
P/Operating cash flow 32.1x 28.4x 23.2x
P/S 2.9x 7.1x 6.0x
P/B 1.5x 4.9x 5.5x
P/Tangible book 1.5x 7.9x 6.8x
EV/EBITDA 29.6x 23.3x 21.1x
EV/EBIT 279.3x 28.1x 24.4x
EV/Revenue 2.1x 7.3x 6.6x
EV/FCF 107.0x 31.4x 27.0x
EV/Operating cash flow 23.1x 29.2x 25.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -3.30 4.06 7.34

Growth

14 metrics
MetricIPGPAMENDSN
Revenue growth (1Y) 13.0% 12.7% 7.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -7.9% 7.0% 4.7%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 25.1% 13.4% 8.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -6.8% 7.9% 5.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 103.4% 11.2% 18.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -62.6% 8.2% 6.4%
Net income growth (1Y) 112.8% 9.6% 22.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -36.2% 8.5% 3.5%
EPS growth (1Y) 112.7% 10.4% 23.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -34.0% 8.7% 4.4%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -36.2% 8.1% 26.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -24.2% 11.0% 5.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -67.8% 8.4% 33.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -43.0% 12.0% 5.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricIPGPAMENDSN
Gross margin 38.4% 36.4% 55.3%
EBITDA margin 7.0% 31.2% 31.2%
Operating margin 0.7% 25.9% 26.9%
Pretax margin 3.7% 24.3% 22.6%
Net margin 2.6% 20.0% 18.6%
FCF margin 1.9% 23.2% 24.3%
Operating cash flow margin 9.0% 24.9% 26.0%
Return on equity 1.3% 14.2% 17.2%
Return on assets 1.1% 9.6% 9.3%
Return on invested capital – 12.8% 13.1%
Return on capital employed 0.4% 14.8% 15.3%
Asset turnover 0.4x 0.5x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.5x 1.2x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 3.9% 0.6% 0.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricIPGPAMENDSN
Debt / assets – 12.3% 29.1%
Debt / equity – 0.2x 0.5x
Net debt / EBITDA – 0.6x 1.7x
Debt / FCF – 1.1x 2.4x
Liabilities / assets 12.3% 32.1% 45.0%
Equity / assets 87.7% 67.9% 55.0%
Interest coverage – 21.1x 8.8x
Current ratio 6.2x 1.2x 1.8x
Quick ratio 4.4x 0.6x 1.0x
Cash ratio 3.6x 0.2x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 8.84 8.27 6.23

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricIPGPAMENDSN
Dividend yield – 0.5% 1.1%
Net buyback yield 4.3% 0.7% 1.1%
Shareholder yield 4.3% 1.3% 2.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 18.9% 33.0%
Payout ratio (FCF) – 16.3% 25.3%
Dividend growth (1Y) – 9.4% 3.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 11.3% 7.2%

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.

ConsensusIPGPAMENDSN
Forward P/E 69.3xFY2026 29.6xFY2026 28.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $1.05FY2026 $8.20FY2026 $11.14FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +43.8%FY2026 +10.4%FY2026 +8.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +109.5% +8.4% +21.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.18BFY2026 $7.96BFY2026 $3.19BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +18.1%FY2026 +7.5%FY2026 +14.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +7.7% +18.3% +5.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersIPGPAMENDSN
Held by institutions 71.5% 89.6% 76.0%
Institutions holding 356 1,195 755
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.7% +2.3% +3.1%
Institutions buying 214 615 389
Institutions selling 96 399 240
Buyers to sellers 2.23 1.54 1.62

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.

IPGPAMENDSN
IPGP 1.00 0.29 0.31
AME 0.29 1.00 0.59
NDSN 0.31 0.59 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, IPGP, AME and NDSN?

Ametek (AME) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ipg Photonics (IPGP) $3.16B, Ametek (AME) $56.47B, Nordson (NDSN) $18.07B.

Which stock is cheaper, IPGP, AME and NDSN?

Nordson (NDSN) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ipg Photonics (IPGP) 114.7x, Ametek (AME) 35.8x, Nordson (NDSN) 32.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Nordson (NDSN) is cheapest (Ipg Photonics (IPGP) 69.3x, Ametek (AME) 29.6x, Nordson (NDSN) 28.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Ipg Photonics (IPGP) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Ipg Photonics (IPGP) +13.0%, Ametek (AME) +12.7%, Nordson (NDSN) +7.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Ametek (AME) has the highest net margin (Ipg Photonics (IPGP) 2.6%, Ametek (AME) 20.0%, Nordson (NDSN) 18.6%). On return on invested capital, Nordson (NDSN) leads (Ametek (AME) 12.8%, Nordson (NDSN) 13.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Nordson (NDSN) returned the most: Ipg Photonics (IPGP) -15.9%, Ametek (AME) +29.8%, Nordson (NDSN) +36.5%. Over five years, Ametek (AME) compounded fastest (Ipg Photonics (IPGP) -14.3%/yr, Ametek (AME) +13.3%/yr, Nordson (NDSN) +5.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Nordson (NDSN) has the highest dividend yield: Ipg Photonics (IPGP) 0.00%, Ametek (AME) 0.01%, Nordson (NDSN) 0.01%. Ipg Photonics (IPGP) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Nordson (NDSN) has been the steadiest (Ipg Photonics (IPGP) 72.1%, Ametek (AME) 23.9%, Nordson (NDSN) 22.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, IPGP, AME and NDSN?

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