SWK vs ITW vs LECO Stock Comparison

Stanley Black & Decker, Illinois Tool Works and Lincoln Electric Holdings Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ITW Illinois Tool Works Inc
$276.01 +0.7% 1M +12.3% 1Y
Market cap
$78.60B
P/E
24.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$16.47B
Div. yield
0.02%
Industrial Machinery Industrials
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Stanley Black & Decker leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Stanley Black & Decker 5, Illinois Tool Works 4, Lincoln Electric Holdings 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionSWKITWLECOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $14.86B $78.60B $15.32B ITW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 23.9x 24.6x 27.7x SWK
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 17.1x 25.9x 22.3x SWK
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +0.6% +4.3% +9.3% LECO
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 4.1% 19.4% 12.4% ITW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 6.6% 27.1% 21.4% ITW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 1.9x 1.0x LECO
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.03% 0.02% 0.01% SWK
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +41.5% +12.3% +7.0% SWK
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -11.8%/yr +4.4%/yr +12.4%/yr LECO
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 36.5% 21.3% 29.6% ITW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 59/100 48/100 58/100 SWK

Percentile Scorecard

SWKITWLECO

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

AxisSWKITWLECO
Valuation 89 #23 of 203 26 #150 of 203 39 #124 of 203
Growth 81 #37 of 187 33 #125 of 187 51 #93 of 187
Profitability 52 #89 of 185 100 #2 of 185 95 #10 of 185
Financial Health 28 #158 of 219 23 #170 of 219 46 #118 of 219
Shareholder Returns 47 #82 of 153 59 #63 of 153 57 #67 of 153
Overall 59 48 58
  • SWK ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • ITW ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • LECO ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodSWKITWLECOSPY
1 month +8.8%+0.7%-4.8% -0.8%
3 months +5.6%-3.0%+0.7% +3.5%
6 months +24.4%+2.3%-1.0% +7.0%
Year to date +33.8%+12.1%+7.9% +12.2%
1 year +41.5%+12.3%+7.0% +13.0%
3 years +21.2%+23.6%+49.8% +86.3%
3 years, per year +6.6%+7.3%+14.4% +23.1%
5 years -46.6%+24.2%+79.7% +68.6%
5 years, per year -11.8%+4.4%+12.4% +11.0%
10 years -14.9%+143.4%+293.7% +258.0%
10 years, per year -1.6%+9.3%+14.7% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureSWKITWLECOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 36.5%21.3%29.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 32.4%20.8%31.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.410.471.16 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.140.580.24 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -71.6%-28.9%-35.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -4.4%-7.9%-13.5% -1.8%
52-week high $104.00$299.60$298.88 $779.14
52-week low $62.12$241.07$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.

MultipleSWKITWLECO
P/E now vs peer median 24.0xmedian 26.0x 24.7xmedian 26.0x 25.5xmedian 26.0x
P/S now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 1.9x 4.8xmedian 1.9x 3.1xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 10.6xmedian 14.0x 18.4xmedian 14.0x 17.2xmedian 14.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 11.6xmedian 21.4x 26.9xmedian 21.4x 26.0xmedian 21.4x
P/B now vs peer median 1.7xmedian 2.2x 27.2xmedian 2.2x 9.1xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median -4.57median 1.26 8.37median 1.26 3.63median 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 monthsSWKITWLECO
Revenue $15.25B $16.47B $4.48B
Gross profit $4.86B $7.27B $1.61B
Operating income $1.32B $4.36B $767.80M
Net income $620.50M $3.19B $553.55M
Free cash flow $1.29B $2.92B $542.40M
EPS (diluted) $4.12 $11.13 $10.05
Cash & equivalents $592.40M $839.00M $242.44M
Total debt $4.76B $9.69B $1.15B
Shares (diluted) 150.65M 287.00M 55.10M
Enterprise value $13.38B $75.16B $14.17B

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
MetricSWKITWLECO
P/E 24.0x 24.7x 25.5x
P/FCF 11.6x 26.9x 26.0x
P/Operating cash flow 9.7x 23.6x 20.5x
P/S 1.0x 4.8x 3.1x
P/B 1.7x 27.2x 9.1x
P/Tangible book 2.5x 33.6x 9.1x
EV/EBITDA 10.6x 18.4x 17.2x
EV/EBIT 14.6x 20.0x 19.5x
EV/Revenue 1.3x 5.3x 3.3x
EV/FCF 14.9x 29.9x 27.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 12.4x 26.3x 21.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -4.57 8.37 3.63

Growth

14 metrics
MetricSWKITWLECO
Revenue growth (1Y) 0.6% 4.3% 9.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -2.0% 0.8% 4.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 9.3% 5.3% 8.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 11.2% 2.7% 6.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 51.4% 6.4% 13.0%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 149.6% 3.4% 7.0%
Net income growth (1Y) 29.7% -5.1% 10.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -7.7% 1.0% 5.0%
EPS growth (1Y) 30.7% -3.1% 11.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -5.3% 3.0% 7.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 104.3% 5.8% 10.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 96.8% 3.1% 6.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 211.7% 7.2% 7.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 110.2% 4.1% 3.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricSWKITWLECO
Gross margin 31.9% 44.2% 36.0%
EBITDA margin 11.9% 28.9% 19.4%
Operating margin 8.6% 26.5% 17.1%
Pretax margin 5.6% 25.0% 16.1%
Net margin 4.1% 19.4% 12.4%
FCF margin 8.5% 17.7% 12.1%
Operating cash flow margin 10.2% 20.2% 15.3%
Return on equity 6.9% 104.3% 36.1%
Return on assets 3.0% 19.5% 14.4%
Return on invested capital 6.6% 27.1% 21.4%
Return on capital employed 8.0% 41.9% 25.9%
Asset turnover 0.7x 1.0x 1.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.5x 1.0x 1.2x
Stock comp / revenue 0.5% 0.4% 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricSWKITWLECO
Debt / assets 23.7% 58.8% 30.2%
Debt / equity 0.5x 3.3x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 1.9x 1.0x
Debt / FCF 3.7x 3.3x 2.1x
Liabilities / assets 55.4% 82.4% 59.2%
Equity / assets 44.6% 17.6% 40.8%
Interest coverage 2.8x 14.5x –
Current ratio 1.4x 1.1x 2.0x
Quick ratio 0.5x 0.7x 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.1x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 2.48 8.00 7.53

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricSWKITWLECO
Dividend yield 3.4% 2.4% 1.2%
Net buyback yield 1.8% 2.3% 1.6%
Shareholder yield 5.1% 4.7% 2.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) 81.0% 57.4% 30.9%
Payout ratio (FCF) 39.0% 62.8% 31.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) 1.3% 5.5% 3.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 1.9% 5.1% 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.

ConsensusSWKITWLECO
Forward P/E 17.1xFY2026 25.9xFY2026 22.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.81FY2026 $10.67FY2026 $11.62FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +24.4%FY2026 +1.7%FY2026 +17.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +5.2% +19.3% +0.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $16.13BFY2026 $16.46BFY2026 $4.84BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +6.6%FY2026 +2.6%FY2026 +14.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +0.4% +11.4% +5.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersSWKITWLECO
Held by institutions 95.7% 84.9% 81.3%
Institutions holding 771 1,969 701
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.3% +0.8% +5.5%
Institutions buying 417 846 297
Institutions selling 243 750 266
Buyers to sellers 1.72 1.13 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.

SWKITWLECO
SWK 1.00 0.62 0.59
ITW 0.62 1.00 0.64
LECO 0.59 0.64 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, SWK, ITW and LECO?

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) $14.86B, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) $78.60B, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) $15.32B.

Which stock is cheaper, SWK, ITW and LECO?

Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) 23.9x, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 24.6x, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 27.7x). On next year's consensus earnings, Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) is cheapest (Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) 17.1x, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 25.9x, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 22.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) +0.6%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) +4.3%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) +9.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) has the highest net margin (Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) 4.1%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 19.4%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 12.4%). On return on invested capital, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) leads (Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) 6.6%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 27.1%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 21.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) returned the most: Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) +41.5%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) +12.3%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) +7.0%. Over five years, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) compounded fastest (Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) -11.8%/yr, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) +4.4%/yr, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) +12.4%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) has the highest dividend yield: Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) 0.03%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 0.02%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 0.01%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) has been the steadiest (Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) 36.5%, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) 21.3%, Lincoln Electric Holdings (LECO) 29.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, SWK, ITW 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, Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) 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.