VLTO vs AWK vs PNR Stock Comparison

Veralto, American Water Works Company and Pentair Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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VLTO Veralto Corp
$117.02 +21.3% 1M +17.5% 1Y
Market cap
$28.43B
P/E
28.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.80B
Div. yield
–
Water Treatment Industrials
5 wins
PNR PENTAIR plc
$72.03 +36.5% 1M -32.8% 1Y
Market cap
$11.13B
P/E
18.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.97B
Div. yield
0.02%
Pumps and Valves Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Veralto leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Veralto 5, American Water Works Company 4, Pentair 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionVLTOAWKPNRLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $28.43B $30.29B $11.13B AWK
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 28.4x 26.7x 18.2x PNR
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 25.8x 26.2x 15.8x PNR
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.4% +5.4% -3.9% VLTO
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 17.3% 21.3% 15.4% AWK
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 17.1% 6.0% 12.5% VLTO
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.8x 5.5x 1.6x VLTO
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.02% 0.02% AWK
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +17.5% +16.8% -32.8% VLTO
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years — -2.5%/yr -0.6%/yr PNR
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 24.4% 22.3% 37.0% AWK
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 75/100 49/100 60/100 VLTO

Percentile Scorecard

VLTOAWKPNR

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

AxisVLTOAWKPNR
Valuation 79 #5 of 20 6 #63 of 67 64 #74 of 204
Growth 71 #6 of 18 45 #36 of 65 31 #133 of 191
Profitability 100 #1 of 17 94 #5 of 65 81 #36 of 189
Financial Health 55 #10 of 21 40 #40 of 66 47 #117 of 221
Shareholder Returns 73 #4 of 12 62 #26 of 67 77 #38 of 159
Overall 75 49 60
  • VLTO ranked among 21 companies in Environmental Equipment
  • AWK ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities
  • PNR ranked among 223 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodVLTOAWKPNRSPY
1 month +21.3%+17.1%+36.5% -1.0%
3 months +20.5%+11.5%+4.3% -0.4%
6 months +34.7%+19.1%-9.9% +4.5%
Year to date +17.3%+14.7%-30.8% +12.4%
1 year +17.5%+16.8%-32.8% +13.6%
3 years +65.3%+15.1%+16.9% +76.4%
3 years, per year +18.2%+4.8%+5.3% +20.8%
5 years —-11.8%-3.1% +63.7%
5 years, per year —-2.5%-0.6% +10.4%
10 years —+112.0%+31.7% +267.7%
10 years, per year —+7.8%+2.8% +13.9%

Risk

MeasureVLTOAWKPNRSPY
Volatility, 1Y 24.4%22.3%37.0% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 21.9%19.9%40.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.15-0.470.92 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.710.75-0.89 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -27.6%-39.7%-53.7% -25.4%
From 52-week high 0.0%0.0%-33.7% -1.6%
52-week high $117.02$149.64$108.69 $779.14
52-week low $82.23$121.13$52.11 $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.

MultipleVLTOAWKPNR
P/E now vs peer median 28.5xmedian 28.5x 26.2xmedian 21.2x 18.8xmedian 25.5x
P/S now vs peer median 4.9xmedian 2.6x 5.6xmedian 2.9x 2.9xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 21.7xmedian 21.7x 15.7xmedian 12.9x 14.4xmedian 14.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 26.1xmedian 25.6x -25.8xmedian 33.4x 17.8xmedian 23.3x
P/B now vs peer median 8.8xmedian 2.0x 2.5xmedian 1.8x 3.0xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median 5.11median 1.79 4.00median 2.06 2.45median 1.16

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 monthsVLTOAWKPNR
Revenue $5.80B $5.34B $3.97B
Gross profit $3.49B – $1.64B
Operating income $1.27B $1.98B $777.40M
Net income $1.00B $1.14B $612.20M
Free cash flow $1.09B -$1.16B $646.60M
R&D $278.00M – $94.10M
EPS (diluted) $4.08 $5.71 $3.82
Cash & equivalents $1.79B $121.00M $74.00M
Total debt $2.92B $16.34B $1.48B
Shares (diluted) 245.30M 199.00M 160.30M
Enterprise value $21.07B $29.75B $10.79B

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
MetricVLTOAWKPNR
P/E 28.5x 26.2x 18.8x
P/FCF 26.1x -25.8x 17.8x
P/Operating cash flow 24.6x 13.0x 15.9x
P/S 4.9x 5.6x 2.9x
P/B 8.8x 2.5x 3.0x
P/Tangible book 11.8x 2.5x 4.1x
EV/EBITDA 21.7x 15.7x 14.4x
EV/EBIT 23.4x 23.2x 16.6x
EV/Revenue 5.1x 8.6x 3.3x
EV/FCF 27.1x -39.8x 20.0x
EV/Operating cash flow 25.6x 20.0x 17.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 5.11 4.00 2.45

Growth

14 metrics
MetricVLTOAWKPNR
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.4% 5.4% -3.9%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.2% 8.9% -1.3%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 6.7% – -1.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 6.8% – 3.4%
Operating income growth (1Y) -0.2% 5.6% -8.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 3.3% 10.5% 4.4%
Net income growth (1Y) 9.7% 2.2% -6.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 5.4% 7.3% 6.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 12.1% 0.1% -3.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 5.6% 6.6% 7.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 10.0% 12.9% -14.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 3.7% 10.8% 6.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 10.9% -23.5% -17.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 3.1% -13.7% 7.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricVLTOAWKPNR
Gross margin 60.2% – 41.2%
EBITDA margin 23.6% 54.9% 22.7%
Operating margin 21.8% 37.0% 19.6%
Pretax margin 20.3% 27.0% 17.5%
Net margin 17.3% 21.3% 15.4%
FCF margin 18.8% -21.7% 16.3%
Operating cash flow margin 19.9% 43.0% 18.3%
Return on equity 31.7% 9.6% 16.1%
Return on assets 11.9% 3.1% 9.2%
Return on invested capital 17.1% 6.0% 12.5%
Return on capital employed 18.8% 6.0% 13.5%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.1x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.2x 2.0x 1.2x
Stock comp / revenue 1.3% – 0.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricVLTOAWKPNR
Debt / assets 35.5% 43.9% 22.3%
Debt / equity 0.9x 1.4x 0.4x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.8x 5.5x 1.6x
Debt / FCF 2.7x -14.1x 2.3x
Liabilities / assets 60.7% 68.0% 42.1%
Equity / assets 39.3% 32.0% 57.9%
Interest coverage 13.2x 3.0x –
Current ratio 2.0x 0.4x 1.5x
Quick ratio 1.7x 0.3x 0.7x
Cash ratio 1.1x 0.0x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 5.29 1.07 4.18

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricVLTOAWKPNR
Dividend yield 0.4% 2.3% 1.5%
Net buyback yield 1.8% – 3.5%
Shareholder yield 2.2% 2.3% 5.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 59.4% 28.1%
Payout ratio (FCF) – -58.3% 26.6%
Dividend growth (1Y) – 8.7% 6.5%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 9.5% 6.2%

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.

ConsensusVLTOAWKPNR
Forward P/E 25.8xFY2026 26.2xFY2026 15.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $4.54FY2026 $5.72FY2026 $4.55FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +16.4%FY2026 +0.5%FY2026 -7.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +7.9% +10.8% +17.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $5.70BFY2026 $5.14BFY2026 $3.86BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +3.7%FY2026 +0.0%FY2026 -7.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +16.5% +9.9% +10.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersVLTOAWKPNR
Held by institutions 96.1% 100.0% 95.0%
Institutions holding 977 1,129 721
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.3% +8.0% -0.1%
Institutions buying 399 531 354
Institutions selling 386 416 257
Buyers to sellers 1.03 1.28 1.38

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.

VLTOAWKPNR
VLTO 1.00 0.28 0.38
AWK 0.28 1.00 0.22
PNR 0.38 0.22 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, VLTO, AWK and PNR?

American Water Works Company (AWK) is the largest by market capitalisation: Veralto (VLTO) $28.43B, American Water Works Company (AWK) $30.29B, Pentair (PNR) $11.13B.

Which stock is cheaper, VLTO, AWK and PNR?

Pentair (PNR) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Veralto (VLTO) 28.4x, American Water Works Company (AWK) 26.7x, Pentair (PNR) 18.2x). On next year's consensus earnings, Pentair (PNR) is cheapest (Veralto (VLTO) 25.8x, American Water Works Company (AWK) 26.2x, Pentair (PNR) 15.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Veralto (VLTO) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Veralto (VLTO) +6.4%, American Water Works Company (AWK) +5.4%, Pentair (PNR) -3.9%.

Which company is more profitable?

American Water Works Company (AWK) has the highest net margin (Veralto (VLTO) 17.3%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 21.3%, Pentair (PNR) 15.4%). On return on invested capital, Veralto (VLTO) leads (Veralto (VLTO) 17.1%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 6.0%, Pentair (PNR) 12.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Veralto (VLTO) returned the most: Veralto (VLTO) +17.5%, American Water Works Company (AWK) +16.8%, Pentair (PNR) -32.8%. Over five years, Pentair (PNR) compounded fastest (American Water Works Company (AWK) -2.5%/yr, Pentair (PNR) -0.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

American Water Works Company (AWK) has the highest dividend yield: Veralto (VLTO) 0.00%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 0.02%, Pentair (PNR) 0.02%. Veralto (VLTO) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, American Water Works Company (AWK) has been the steadiest (Veralto (VLTO) 24.4%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 22.3%, Pentair (PNR) 37.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, VLTO, AWK and PNR?

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