PRLB vs GE vs LECO Stock Comparison

Proto Labs, General Electric and Lincoln Electric Holdings Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
PRLB Proto Labs Inc
$85.54 -4.2% 1M +54.8% 1Y
Market cap
$2.07B
P/E
67.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$560.54M
Div. yield
–
3D Printing Industrials
2 wins
GE General Electric Co
$285.64 -10.7% 1M -6.8% 1Y
Market cap
$298.78B
P/E
32.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$52.58B
Div. yield
0.01%
Commercial Aerospace Industrials
5 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

General Electric leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (General Electric 5, Lincoln Electric Holdings 5, Proto Labs 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionPRLBGELECOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $2.07B $298.78B $14.14B GE
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 67.8x 32.8x 25.5x LECO
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 37.4x 38.6x 22.0x LECO
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +10.2% +19.6% +9.3% GE
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.4% 17.3% 12.4% GE
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — -57.8% 21.4% LECO
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — -0.5x 1.0x GE
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.01% LECO
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +54.8% -6.8% +5.7% PRLB
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +3.7%/yr +34.6%/yr +12.1%/yr GE
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 46.8% 33.1% 29.5% LECO
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 59/100 45/100 57/100 PRLB

Percentile Scorecard

PRLBGELECO

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

AxisPRLBGELECO
Valuation 34 #135 of 203 32 #68 of 100 39 #124 of 203
Growth 83 #32 of 188 28 #70 of 97 50 #94 of 188
Profitability 52 #91 of 187 59 #40 of 96 95 #11 of 187
Financial Health 96 #11 of 222 19 #86 of 106 46 #121 of 222
Shareholder Returns 32 #104 of 153 86 #10 of 65 56 #68 of 153
Overall 59 45 57
  • PRLB ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • GE ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • LECO ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodPRLBGELECOSPY
1 month -4.2%-10.7%-3.6% -1.0%
3 months +9.2%-19.2%+1.8% +2.9%
6 months +32.4%+0.4%-1.6% +6.4%
Year to date +69.1%-7.3%+6.8% +11.4%
1 year +54.8%-6.8%+5.7% +13.1%
3 years +251.1%+215.0%+52.4% +79.4%
3 years, per year +52.0%+46.6%+15.1% +21.5%
5 years +19.7%+340.7%+77.1% +67.7%
5 years, per year +3.7%+34.6%+12.1% +10.9%
10 years +59.8%+105.7%+283.8% +255.2%
10 years, per year +4.8%+7.5%+14.4% +13.5%

Risk

MeasurePRLBGELECOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 46.8%33.1%29.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 38.7%35.1%31.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.031.211.14 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.17-0.200.19 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -71.4%-45.1%-35.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -13.3%-25.0%-14.4% -2.5%
52-week high $98.64$381.07$298.88 $779.14
52-week low $46.81$273.25$220.64 $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.

MultiplePRLBGELECO
P/E now vs peer median 67.3xmedian 25.9x 32.5xmedian 26.2x 25.3xmedian 25.9x
P/S now vs peer median 3.7xmedian 1.9x 5.6xmedian 2.9x 3.1xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 27.4xmedian 13.7x -13.0xmedian 14.7x 17.1xmedian 13.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 36.1xmedian 21.1x 36.9xmedian 24.9x 25.7xmedian 21.1x
P/B now vs peer median 3.0xmedian 2.3x 16.6xmedian 2.4x 9.0xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median 2.10median 1.19 -113.70median 0.92 3.59median 1.19

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 monthsPRLBGELECO
Revenue $560.54M $52.58B $4.48B
Gross profit $254.60M $18.52B $1.61B
Operating income $36.81M -$24.73B $767.80M
Net income $30.48M $9.13B $553.55M
Free cash flow $56.66M $7.99B $542.40M
R&D $42.36M $1.81B –
EPS (diluted) $1.25 $8.74 $10.05
Cash & equivalents $127.92M $8.76B $242.44M
Total debt – $79.60B $5.00B
Shares (diluted) 24.42M 1.04B 55.10M
Enterprise value $1.54B $257.30B $12.99B

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
MetricPRLBGELECO
P/E 67.3x 32.5x 25.3x
P/FCF 36.1x 36.9x 25.7x
P/Operating cash flow 26.1x 31.3x 20.3x
P/S 3.7x 5.6x 3.1x
P/B 3.0x 16.6x 9.0x
P/Tangible book 3.0x 21.5x 9.0x
EV/EBITDA 27.4x -13.0x 17.1x
EV/EBIT 51.7x -12.4x 19.4x
EV/Revenue 3.4x 5.8x 3.3x
EV/FCF 33.6x 38.3x 27.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 24.2x 32.4x 21.6x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.10 -113.70 3.59

Growth

14 metrics
MetricPRLBGELECO
Revenue growth (1Y) 10.2% 19.6% 9.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.9% 7.2% 4.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 13.3% 11.7% 8.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 6.8% 10.9% 6.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 121.9% -29.4% 13.0%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 33.2% -126.8% 7.0%
Net income growth (1Y) 105.8% 13.2% 10.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 31.6% -3.4% 5.0%
EPS growth (1Y) 103.1% 15.5% 11.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 32.0% -0.3% 7.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 10.6% 21.4% 10.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 7.7% 6.3% 6.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -14.0% 20.1% 7.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 11.9% 2.7% 3.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricPRLBGELECO
Gross margin 45.4% 35.2% 36.0%
EBITDA margin 12.4% -44.6% 19.4%
Operating margin 6.6% -47.0% 17.1%
Pretax margin 7.6% 20.3% 16.1%
Net margin 5.4% 17.3% 12.4%
FCF margin 10.1% 15.2% 12.1%
Operating cash flow margin 14.0% 17.9% 15.3%
Return on equity 4.4% 51.2% 36.1%
Return on assets 3.9% 7.2% 14.4%
Return on invested capital – -57.8% 21.4%
Return on capital employed 5.2% -29.1% 25.9%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.4x 1.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.6x 1.0x 1.2x
Stock comp / revenue 2.6% – 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricPRLBGELECO
Debt / assets – 15.2% 30.2%
Debt / equity – 1.1x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA – -0.5x 1.0x
Debt / FCF – 2.4x 2.1x
Liabilities / assets 12.6% 86.0% 59.2%
Equity / assets 87.4% 14.0% 40.8%
Interest coverage – -26.7x –
Current ratio 3.6x 1.0x 2.0x
Quick ratio 3.2x 0.6x 1.0x
Cash ratio 2.0x 0.2x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 13.94 2.40 7.49

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricPRLBGELECO
Dividend yield – 0.6% 1.2%
Net buyback yield 0.6% 2.9% 1.6%
Shareholder yield 0.6% 3.5% 2.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 19.1% 30.9%
Payout ratio (FCF) – 21.8% 31.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) – 26.6% 3.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 36.5% 7.0%

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.

ConsensusPRLBGELECO
Forward P/E 37.4xFY2026 38.6xFY2026 22.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.29FY2026 $7.40FY2026 $11.62FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +38.0%FY2026 +16.2%FY2026 +17.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +9.6% +28.6% +0.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $612.12MFY2026 $53.75BFY2026 $4.83BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +14.8%FY2026 +27.0%FY2026 +14.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +4.8% +11.1% +5.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersPRLBGELECO
Held by institutions 93.7% 79.4% 81.3%
Institutions holding 276 3,441 701
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.7% +1.5% +5.5%
Institutions buying 145 1,829 297
Institutions selling 89 1,148 266
Buyers to sellers 1.63 1.59 1.12

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.

PRLBGELECO
PRLB 1.00 0.35 0.50
GE 0.35 1.00 0.40
LECO 0.50 0.40 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, PRLB, GE and LECO?

General Electric (GE) is the largest by market capitalisation: Proto Labs (PRLB) $2.07B, General Electric (GE) $298.78B, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) $14.14B.

Which stock is cheaper, PRLB, GE and LECO?

Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Proto Labs (PRLB) 67.8x, General Electric (GE) 32.8x, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 25.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) is cheapest (Proto Labs (PRLB) 37.4x, General Electric (GE) 38.6x, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 22.0x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

General Electric (GE) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Proto Labs (PRLB) +10.2%, General Electric (GE) +19.6%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) +9.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

General Electric (GE) has the highest net margin (Proto Labs (PRLB) 5.4%, General Electric (GE) 17.3%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 12.4%). On return on invested capital, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) leads (General Electric (GE) -57.8%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 21.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Proto Labs (PRLB) returned the most: Proto Labs (PRLB) +54.8%, General Electric (GE) -6.8%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) +5.7%. Over five years, General Electric (GE) compounded fastest (Proto Labs (PRLB) +3.7%/yr, General Electric (GE) +34.6%/yr, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) +12.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) has the highest dividend yield: Proto Labs (PRLB) 0.00%, General Electric (GE) 0.01%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 0.01%. Proto Labs (PRLB) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) has been the steadiest (Proto Labs (PRLB) 46.8%, General Electric (GE) 33.1%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 29.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, PRLB, GE and LECO?

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