KOP vs IFF vs ESI Stock Comparison

Koppers Holdings, International Flavors & Fragrances and Element Solutions Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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KOP Koppers Holdings Inc.
$40.18 -13.1% 1M +39.9% 1Y
Market cap
$761.29M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$1.89B
Div. yield
–
Specialty Chemicals Basic Materials
1 win
ESI Element Solutions Inc
$33.21 -6.4% 1M +27.9% 1Y
Market cap
$8.15B
P/E
39.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.49B
Div. yield
–
Specialty Chemicals Basic Materials
3 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

International Flavors & Fragrances leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (International Flavors & Fragrances 7, Element Solutions 3, Koppers Holdings 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionKOPIFFESILeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $761.29M $23.88B $8.15B IFF
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -8.8x 34.3x 39.8x IFF
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 10.5x 29.0x 19.5x KOP
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -5.0% -4.6% +39.6% ESI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -4.6% 7.0% 5.9% IFF
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -2.7% 3.0% 5.4% ESI
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 23.6x 3.0x 3.2x IFF
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.02% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +39.9% +43.1% +27.9% IFF
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +3.1%/yr -8.3%/yr +7.8%/yr ESI
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 35.4% 35.0% 46.8% IFF
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 47/100 50/100 50/100 IFF

Percentile Scorecard

KOPIFFESI

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

AxisKOPIFFESI
Valuation 73 #26 of 94 43 #54 of 94 37 #60 of 94
Growth 26 #68 of 92 80 #19 of 92 76 #23 of 92
Profitability 41 #53 of 89 57 #39 of 89 59 #37 of 89
Financial Health 18 #80 of 97 44 #55 of 97 46 #53 of 97
Shareholder Returns 78 #16 of 70 26 #52 of 70 30 #49 of 70
Overall 47 50 50
  • KOP ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • IFF ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals
  • ESI ranked among 99 companies in Chemicals

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodKOPIFFESISPY
1 month -13.1%+9.8%-6.4% -1.0%
3 months -19.9%+23.9%-11.3% +2.9%
6 months -0.2%+32.3%-17.7% +6.4%
Year to date +48.4%+39.7%+32.9% +11.4%
1 year +39.9%+43.1%+27.9% +13.1%
3 years +13.0%+42.4%+81.0% +79.4%
3 years, per year +4.1%+12.5%+21.9% +21.5%
5 years +16.6%-35.2%+45.3% +67.7%
5 years, per year +3.1%-8.3%+7.8% +10.9%
10 years +18.6%-27.5%+341.6% +255.2%
10 years, per year +1.7%-3.2%+16.0% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureKOPIFFESISPY
Volatility, 1Y 35.4%35.0%46.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 36.3%28.7%47.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.950.672.16 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.131.230.60 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -58.8%-61.1%-40.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -23.2%0.0%-32.3% -2.5%
52-week high $52.33$94.13$49.09 $779.14
52-week low $26.67$61.49$22.99 $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.

MultipleKOPIFFESI
P/E now vs peer median -8.8xmedian 21.5x 34.5xmedian 21.5x 39.4xmedian 21.5x
P/S now vs peer median 0.4xmedian 1.4x 2.4xmedian 1.4x 2.3xmedian 1.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 44.5xmedian 12.4x 17.1xmedian 12.4x 17.1xmedian 12.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 5.5xmedian 15.5x 44.5xmedian 15.5x 44.1xmedian 15.5x
P/B now vs peer median 2.0xmedian 1.6x 1.7xmedian 1.6x 2.8xmedian 1.6x
PEG now vs peer median 0.19median 1.70 1.07median 1.70 0.71median 1.70

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 monthsKOPIFFESI
Revenue $1.89B $9.98B $3.49B
Gross profit $423.40M $3.74B $1.28B
Operating income -$42.30M $754.00M $408.70M
Net income -$86.90M $295.00M $205.20M
Free cash flow $138.70M $540.00M $182.90M
R&D – $684.00M $80.00M
EPS (diluted) $-4.54 $2.71 $0.84
Cash & equivalents $40.70M $569.00M $224.90M
Total debt $897.60M $23.75B $7.98B
Shares (diluted) 19.13M 257.00M 243.70M
Enterprise value $601.89M $21.54B $6.94B

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
MetricKOPIFFESI
P/E -8.8x 34.5x 39.4x
P/FCF 5.5x 44.5x 44.1x
P/Operating cash flow 4.0x 20.7x 28.4x
P/S 0.4x 2.4x 2.3x
P/B 2.0x 1.7x 2.8x
P/Tangible book 2.6x 2.3x 4.2x
EV/EBITDA 44.5x 17.1x 17.1x
EV/EBIT -38.2x 38.7x 24.3x
EV/Revenue 0.9x 2.9x 2.8x
EV/FCF 11.7x 54.0x 54.2x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.5x 25.1x 35.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.19 1.07 0.71

Growth

14 metrics
MetricKOPIFFESI
Revenue growth (1Y) -5.0% -4.6% 39.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -3.5% -5.6% 14.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -0.3% -3.8% 21.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 2.9% -0.2% 11.7%
Operating income growth (1Y) -134.6% 295.8% 17.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -30.9% 35.2% 31.9%
Net income growth (1Y) -675.5% 170.2% -14.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -44.9% 28.8% 56.0%
EPS growth (1Y) -708.8% 900.0% -15.0%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -46.9% 32.3% 55.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 44.4% 5.4% -16.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 34.2% 12.2% -4.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 92.9% -4.4% -32.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 83.6% 26.8% -12.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricKOPIFFESI
Gross margin 22.4% 37.5% 36.6%
EBITDA margin 1.9% 17.1% 16.6%
Operating margin -2.2% 7.6% 11.7%
Pretax margin -5.2% 3.5% 9.0%
Net margin -4.6% 7.0% 5.9%
FCF margin 7.3% 5.4% 5.2%
Operating cash flow margin 10.1% 11.6% 8.1%
Return on equity -18.6% 2.1% 7.2%
Return on assets -4.8% 1.2% 3.5%
Return on invested capital -2.7% 3.0% 5.4%
Return on capital employed -2.8% 3.6% 7.8%
Asset turnover 1.1x 0.4x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -2.2x 3.9x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 0.6% 0.9% 2.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricKOPIFFESI
Debt / assets 52.1% 22.7% 35.5%
Debt / equity 2.3x 0.4x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 23.6x 3.0x 3.2x
Debt / FCF 6.5x 10.6x 11.4x
Liabilities / assets 77.5% 44.3% 50.7%
Equity / assets 22.5% 55.7% 49.3%
Interest coverage -0.7x 4.0x –
Current ratio 2.3x 2.1x 2.8x
Quick ratio 0.9x 0.5x 1.7x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.1x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 1.95 1.82 2.47

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricKOPIFFESI
Dividend yield 0.9% 1.7% 1.0%
Net buyback yield 6.8% 0.3% 0.5%
Shareholder yield 7.7% 2.0% 1.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 138.6% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 75.7% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 0.0% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – -20.7% –

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.

ConsensusKOPIFFESI
Forward P/E 10.5xFY2026 29.0xFY2026 19.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $3.83FY2026 $3.25FY2026 $1.70FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -5.9%FY2026 -22.6%FY2026 +14.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +23.5% +22.5% +32.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.85BFY2026 $8.11BFY2026 $3.82BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -1.6%FY2026 -25.6%FY2026 +49.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +2.4% -8.3% +2.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersKOPIFFESI
Held by institutions 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Institutions holding 219 753 499
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.7% +6.0% +0.6%
Institutions buying 108 410 269
Institutions selling 66 226 176
Buyers to sellers 1.64 1.81 1.53

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.

KOPIFFESI
KOP 1.00 0.26 0.29
IFF 0.26 1.00 0.14
ESI 0.29 0.14 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, KOP, IFF and ESI?

International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) is the largest by market capitalisation: Koppers Holdings (KOP) $761.29M, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) $23.88B, Element Solutions (ESI) $8.15B.

Which stock is cheaper, KOP, IFF and ESI?

International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Koppers Holdings (KOP) -8.8x, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) 34.3x, Element Solutions (ESI) 39.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Koppers Holdings (KOP) is cheapest (Koppers Holdings (KOP) 10.5x, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) 29.0x, Element Solutions (ESI) 19.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Element Solutions (ESI) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Koppers Holdings (KOP) -5.0%, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) -4.6%, Element Solutions (ESI) +39.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) has the highest net margin (Koppers Holdings (KOP) -4.6%, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) 7.0%, Element Solutions (ESI) 5.9%). On return on invested capital, Element Solutions (ESI) leads (Koppers Holdings (KOP) -2.7%, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) 3.0%, Element Solutions (ESI) 5.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) returned the most: Koppers Holdings (KOP) +39.9%, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) +43.1%, Element Solutions (ESI) +27.9%. Over five years, Element Solutions (ESI) compounded fastest (Koppers Holdings (KOP) +3.1%/yr, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) -8.3%/yr, Element Solutions (ESI) +7.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Koppers Holdings (KOP) 0.00%, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) 0.02%, Element Solutions (ESI) 0.00%. Koppers Holdings (KOP) and Element Solutions (ESI) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) has been the steadiest (Koppers Holdings (KOP) 35.4%, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) 35.0%, Element Solutions (ESI) 46.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, KOP, IFF and ESI?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) leads on 7. 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.