MDLN vs ISRG vs ACU Stock Comparison

Medline, Intuitive Surgical and Acme United Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
MDLN Medline Inc.
$32.37 -7.7% 1M
Market cap
$27.50B
P/E
32.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$28.57B
Div. yield
–
Medical Supplies Healthcare
1 win
ISRG Intuitive Surgical Inc
$444.18 +7.1% 1M -18.6% 1Y
Market cap
$156.90B
P/E
53.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.58B
Div. yield
–
Medical Devices Healthcare
3 wins
ACU Acme United Corp
$66.87 +5.1% 1M +73.3% 1Y
Market cap
$258.61M
P/E
24.8x
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
–
Medical Supplies Healthcare
4 wins

Head to Head

8 decided of 12

Acme United leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Acme United 4, Intuitive Surgical 3, Medline 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionMDLNISRGACULeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $27.50B $156.90B $258.61M ISRG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 32.9x 53.1x 24.8x ACU
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.5x 38.7x 24.3x MDLN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months — +20.5% — –
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.9% 25.5% — ISRG
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 5.4% — — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.2x — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months — -18.6% +73.3% ACU
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years — +4.2%/yr +12.6%/yr ACU
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 44.5% 34.6% 30.7% ACU
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 68/100 80/100 71/100 ISRG

Percentile Scorecard

MDLNISRGACU

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

AxisMDLNISRGACU
Valuation 85 #35 of 227 53 #107 of 227 88 #28 of 227
Growth – 80 #44 of 219 –
Profitability 74 #55 of 205 98 #6 of 205 –
Financial Health 42 #137 of 237 78 #54 of 237 60 #96 of 237
Shareholder Returns 71 #40 of 135 91 #13 of 135 65 #48 of 135
Overall 68 80 71
  • MDLN ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ISRG ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ACU ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodMDLNISRGACUSPY
1 month -7.7%+7.1%+5.1% +0.9%
3 months -19.3%+25.8%+12.2% +5.9%
6 months -25.4%-2.1%+62.7% +8.5%
Year to date -22.9%-21.6%+65.9% +13.3%
1 year —-18.6%+73.3% +12.4%
3 years —+71.5%+120.0% +88.1%
3 years, per year —+19.7%+30.1% +23.5%
5 years —+23.0%+80.7% +68.2%
5 years, per year —+4.2%+12.6% +11.0%
10 years —+499.8%+216.9% +263.4%
10 years, per year —+19.6%+12.2% +13.8%

Risk

MeasureMDLNISRGACUSPY
Volatility, 1Y 44.5%34.6%30.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 48.5%37.4%24.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.610.890.24 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y —-0.542.39 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -36.7%-49.9%-43.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -35.2%-25.1%0.0% -0.9%
52-week high $49.99$592.85$66.87 $779.14
52-week low $31.64$332.02$35.50 $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.

MultipleMDLNISRGACU
P/E now vs peer median 33.1xmedian 28.8x 52.4xmedian 28.8x 24.8xmedian 28.8x
P/S now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 3.0x 13.3xmedian 3.0x 1.2xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 17.0xmedian 17.4x 36.6xmedian 17.4x —median 17.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 26.7xmedian 25.7x 42.8xmedian 25.7x 15.8xmedian 25.7x
P/B now vs peer median 2.2xmedian 2.4x 9.6xmedian 2.4x 2.1xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median —median 1.03 2.04median 1.03 —median 1.03

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 monthsMDLNISRGACU
Revenue $28.57B $11.58B –
Gross profit $7.79B $7.78B –
Operating income $2.03B $3.28B –
Net income $1.03B $2.97B –
Free cash flow $1.59B $3.60B –
R&D – $1.49B –
EPS (diluted) $0.97 $8.41 –
Cash & equivalents $2.33B $2.98B $7.94M
Total debt $12.58B – –
Shares (diluted) 861.00M 351.60M 4.14M
Enterprise value $20.45B $137.19B $258.61M

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
MetricMDLNISRGACU
P/E 33.1x 52.4x 24.8x
P/FCF 26.7x 42.8x 15.8x
P/Operating cash flow 21.2x 37.6x –
P/S 1.5x 13.3x 1.2x
P/B 2.2x 9.6x 2.1x
P/Tangible book 7.7x 10.3x 2.8x
EV/EBITDA 17.0x 36.6x –
EV/EBIT 25.8x 45.6x –
EV/Revenue 1.8x 12.9x –
EV/FCF 33.0x 41.7x –
EV/Operating cash flow 26.2x 36.7x –
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) – 2.04 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMDLNISRGACU
Revenue growth (1Y) – 20.5% –
Revenue CAGR (3Y) – 19.1% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 21.9% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 19.5% –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 16.6% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 24.8% –
Net income growth (1Y) – 7.5% –
Net income CAGR (3Y) – 24.4% –
EPS growth (1Y) – 10.8% –
EPS CAGR (3Y) – 25.7% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) – 38.1% –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 26.4% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – 58.4% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 42.0% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMDLNISRGACU
Gross margin 27.3% 67.2% –
EBITDA margin 10.8% 35.3% –
Operating margin 7.1% 28.4% –
Pretax margin 4.3% 31.3% –
Net margin 2.9% 25.5% –
FCF margin 5.6% 31.1% –
Operating cash flow margin 7.0% 35.3% –
Return on equity 5.4% 17.3% –
Return on assets 2.6% 14.8% –
Return on invested capital 5.4% – –
Return on capital employed 5.6% 18.7% –
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.6x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.0x 1.4x –
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% 7.2% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMDLNISRGACU
Debt / assets 32.0% – –
Debt / equity 0.7x – –
Net debt / EBITDA 3.2x – –
Debt / FCF 7.9x – –
Liabilities / assets 51.5% 16.7% 39.9%
Equity / assets 48.5% 83.3% 60.1%
Interest coverage – – –
Current ratio 4.3x 3.3x 3.9x
Quick ratio 2.3x 2.3x –
Cash ratio 1.0x 1.6x –
Altman Z-score 2.44 30.44 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMDLNISRGACU
Dividend yield – – 1.0%
Net buyback yield 0.0% 2.8% –
Shareholder yield 0.0% 2.8% 1.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

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.

ConsensusMDLNISRGACU
Forward P/E 22.5xFY2026 38.7xFY2026 24.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $1.44FY2026 $11.47FY2026 $2.75FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +0.7%FY2026 +28.4%FY2026 +10.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +13.9% +4.5% +4.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $32.52BFY2026 $11.60BFY2026 $217.65MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +14.4%FY2026 +15.3%FY2026 +10.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +8.0% +11.3% +0.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMDLNISRGACU
Held by institutions 85.5% 86.2% 73.5%
Institutions holding 407 2,236 84
Change in shares held, QoQ +17.9% +4.6% +1.3%
Institutions buying 322 1,071 47
Institutions selling 68 877 21
Buyers to sellers 4.74 1.22 2.24

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.

MDLNISRGACU
MDLN 1.00 0.23 0.25
ISRG 0.23 1.00 0.09
ACU 0.25 0.09 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MDLN, ISRG and ACU?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Medline (MDLN) $27.50B, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) $156.90B, Acme United (ACU) $258.61M.

Which stock is cheaper, MDLN, ISRG and ACU?

Acme United (ACU) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Medline (MDLN) 32.9x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 53.1x, Acme United (ACU) 24.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Medline (MDLN) is cheapest (Medline (MDLN) 22.5x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 38.7x, Acme United (ACU) 24.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is more profitable?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) has the highest net margin (Medline (MDLN) 2.9%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 25.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Acme United (ACU) returned the most: Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) -18.6%, Acme United (ACU) +73.3%. Over five years, Acme United (ACU) compounded fastest (Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) +4.2%/yr, Acme United (ACU) +12.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Acme United (ACU) has been the steadiest (Medline (MDLN) 44.5%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 34.6%, Acme United (ACU) 30.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, MDLN, ISRG and ACU?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Acme United (ACU) leads on 4. 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.