NDSN vs ROK vs RBC Stock Comparison

Nordson, Rockwell Automation and RBC Bearings Prices as of Nov 3, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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NDSN Nordson Corp
$331.06 -0.7% 1M +44.2% 1Y
Market cap
$18.36B
P/E
33.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.98B
Div. yield
0.01%
Industrial Machinery Industrials
6 wins
ROK Rockwell Automation, Inc
$446.41 -1.8% 1M +22.5% 1Y
Market cap
$49.23B
P/E
41.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.97B
Div. yield
–
Industrial Machinery Industrials
2 wins
RBC RBC Bearings INC
$496.50 -3.7% 1M +15.9% 1Y
Market cap
$15.04B
P/E
42.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.02B
Div. yield
–
Industrial Machinery Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Nordson leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Nordson 6, RBC Bearings 3, Rockwell Automation 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionNDSNROKRBCLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $18.36B $49.23B $15.04B ROK
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 33.1x 41.0x 42.4x NDSN
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 29.7x 35.7x 35.5x NDSN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +7.0% +11.3% +17.4% RBC
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 18.6% 13.4% 17.5% NDSN
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 13.1% 21.0% 9.1% ROK
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.7x 1.3x 1.0x RBC
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +44.2% +22.5% +15.9% NDSN
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +4.7%/yr +5.5%/yr +16.7%/yr RBC
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 22.3% 31.6% 29.3% NDSN
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 58/100 54/100 55/100 NDSN

Percentile Scorecard

NDSNROKRBC

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

AxisNDSNROKRBC
Valuation 30 #144 of 204 17 #170 of 204 16 #172 of 204
Growth 58 #81 of 191 52 #93 of 191 90 #20 of 191
Profitability 96 #8 of 189 95 #10 of 189 77 #44 of 189
Financial Health 54 #102 of 221 35 #145 of 221 74 #58 of 221
Shareholder Returns 53 #75 of 158 73 #43 of 158 16 #133 of 158
Overall 58 54 55
  • NDSN ranked among 223 companies in Machinery
  • ROK ranked among 223 companies in Machinery
  • RBC ranked among 223 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodNDSNROKRBCSPY
1 month -0.7%-1.8%-3.7% -2.0%
3 months +6.9%+0.2%-12.3% -2.2%
6 months +17.1%+2.4%-18.3% +4.2%
Year to date +37.7%+14.7%+10.7% +10.6%
1 year +44.2%+22.5%+15.9% +10.4%
3 years +49.4%+69.3%+125.2% +73.6%
3 years, per year +14.3%+19.2%+31.1% +20.2%
5 years +26.0%+30.6%+115.9% +61.6%
5 years, per year +4.7%+5.5%+16.7% +10.1%
10 years +241.4%+280.0%+607.8% +261.3%
10 years, per year +13.1%+14.3%+21.6% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureNDSNROKRBCSPY
Volatility, 1Y 22.3%31.6%29.3% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 21.6%32.4%31.2% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.881.421.17 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.980.710.54 0.81
Max drawdown, 5Y -39.9%-45.6%-35.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -1.1%-9.8%-23.5% -3.2%
52-week high $334.70$495.08$648.89 $779.14
52-week low $226.69$348.51$423.39 $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.

MultipleNDSNROKRBC
P/E now vs peer median 33.2xmedian 25.4x 41.3xmedian 25.4x 44.2xmedian 25.4x
P/S now vs peer median 6.2xmedian 1.9x 5.5xmedian 1.9x 8.0xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 21.6xmedian 14.5x 25.0xmedian 14.5x 26.7xmedian 14.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 25.5xmedian 23.6x 33.0xmedian 23.6x 40.8xmedian 23.6x
P/B now vs peer median 5.6xmedian 2.2x 14.2xmedian 2.2x 4.6xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median 7.55median 1.21 -9.41median 1.21 1.72median 1.21

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 monthsNDSNROKRBC
Revenue $2.98B $8.97B $2.02B
Gross profit $1.65B $4.41B $921.20M
Operating income $800.96M $1.77B $494.50M
Net income $555.18M $1.20B $354.40M
Free cash flow $724.01M $1.50B $399.20M
R&D – $716.00M –
EPS (diluted) $9.91 $10.76 $11.17
Cash & equivalents $113.43M $479.00M $89.30M
Total debt $1.73B $3.26B $710.50M
Shares (diluted) 56.03M 111.60M 31.71M
Enterprise value $17.91B $47.42B $14.66B

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
MetricNDSNROKRBC
P/E 33.2x 41.3x 44.2x
P/FCF 25.5x 33.0x 40.8x
P/Operating cash flow 23.8x 28.6x 33.5x
P/S 6.2x 5.5x 8.0x
P/B 5.6x 14.2x 4.6x
P/Tangible book 7.0x 17.8x 7.4x
EV/EBITDA 21.6x 25.0x 26.7x
EV/EBIT 25.0x 29.5x 34.2x
EV/Revenue 6.7x 5.8x 8.3x
EV/FCF 27.7x 34.8x 42.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 25.9x 30.2x 34.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 7.55 -9.41 1.72

Growth

14 metrics
MetricNDSNROKRBC
Revenue growth (1Y) 7.0% 11.3% 17.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.7% 1.3% 10.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 8.4% 1.9% 20.6%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 5.5% 7.5% 12.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 18.4% -7.1% 28.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 6.4% 2.9% 14.5%
Net income growth (1Y) 22.0% 23.8% 36.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 3.5% -5.5% 23.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 23.5% 25.2% 36.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 4.4% -4.4% 25.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 26.2% 13.8% 34.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 5.9% 22.8% 25.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 33.3% 13.9% 31.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 5.6% 23.6% 23.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricNDSNROKRBC
Gross margin 55.3% 49.1% 45.5%
EBITDA margin 31.2% 23.3% 31.2%
Operating margin 26.9% 19.7% 24.4%
Pretax margin 22.6% 14.7% 22.3%
Net margin 18.6% 13.4% 17.5%
FCF margin 24.3% 16.8% 19.7%
Operating cash flow margin 26.0% 19.3% 24.0%
Return on equity 17.2% 30.9% 10.1%
Return on assets 9.3% 9.8% 6.8%
Return on invested capital 13.1% 21.0% 9.1%
Return on capital employed 15.3% 23.6% 10.3%
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.8x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.4x 1.4x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 0.8% 1.0% 1.1%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricNDSNROKRBC
Debt / assets 29.1% 29.4% 13.7%
Debt / equity 0.5x 0.9x 0.2x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.7x 1.3x 1.0x
Debt / FCF 2.4x 2.2x 1.8x
Liabilities / assets 45.0% 68.5% 31.4%
Equity / assets 55.0% 31.5% 68.6%
Interest coverage 8.8x 12.8x 4.1x
Current ratio 1.8x 1.1x 3.1x
Quick ratio 1.0x 0.7x 1.1x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.1x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 6.34 6.02 7.40

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricNDSNROKRBC
Dividend yield 1.0% 1.2% –
Net buyback yield 1.1% 1.4% 0.0%
Shareholder yield 2.1% 2.7% 0.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) 33.0% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 25.3% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) 3.3% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 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.

ConsensusNDSNROKRBC
Forward P/E 29.7xFY2026 35.7xFY2026 35.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $11.14FY2026 $12.50FY2026 $13.97FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +8.8%FY2026 +18.7%FY2026 +12.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +21.5% +12.3% +13.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $3.19BFY2026 $8.50BFY2026 $2.00BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +14.3%FY2026 +1.9%FY2026 +6.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +5.7% +19.4% +24.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersNDSNROKRBC
Held by institutions 76.0% 89.2% 95.3%
Institutions holding 757 1,544 687
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.1% +3.5% +1.5%
Institutions buying 390 808 362
Institutions selling 241 438 240
Buyers to sellers 1.62 1.84 1.51

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.

NDSNROKRBC
NDSN 1.00 0.54 0.48
ROK 0.54 1.00 0.53
RBC 0.48 0.53 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, NDSN, ROK and RBC?

Rockwell Automation (ROK) is the largest by market capitalisation: Nordson (NDSN) $18.36B, Rockwell Automation (ROK) $49.23B, RBC Bearings (RBC) $15.04B.

Which stock is cheaper, NDSN, ROK and RBC?

Nordson (NDSN) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Nordson (NDSN) 33.1x, Rockwell Automation (ROK) 41.0x, RBC Bearings (RBC) 42.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Nordson (NDSN) is cheapest (Nordson (NDSN) 29.7x, Rockwell Automation (ROK) 35.7x, RBC Bearings (RBC) 35.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

RBC Bearings (RBC) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Nordson (NDSN) +7.0%, Rockwell Automation (ROK) +11.3%, RBC Bearings (RBC) +17.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Nordson (NDSN) has the highest net margin (Nordson (NDSN) 18.6%, Rockwell Automation (ROK) 13.4%, RBC Bearings (RBC) 17.5%). On return on invested capital, Rockwell Automation (ROK) leads (Nordson (NDSN) 13.1%, Rockwell Automation (ROK) 21.0%, RBC Bearings (RBC) 9.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Nordson (NDSN) returned the most: Nordson (NDSN) +44.2%, Rockwell Automation (ROK) +22.5%, RBC Bearings (RBC) +15.9%. Over five years, RBC Bearings (RBC) compounded fastest (Nordson (NDSN) +4.7%/yr, Rockwell Automation (ROK) +5.5%/yr, RBC Bearings (RBC) +16.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Nordson (NDSN) 0.01%, Rockwell Automation (ROK) 0.00%, RBC Bearings (RBC) 0.00%. Rockwell Automation (ROK) and RBC Bearings (RBC) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Nordson (NDSN) has been the steadiest (Nordson (NDSN) 22.3%, Rockwell Automation (ROK) 31.6%, RBC Bearings (RBC) 29.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, NDSN, ROK and RBC?

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.