AIT vs. ETN: Applied Industrial vs. Eaton Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but AIT is classified in Trading Companies & Distributors while ETN is classified in Electrical Equipment.

Company profile comparison for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Profile Item	AIT	ETN
Name	Applied Industrial Technologies Inc.	Eaton Corporation plc
Country/Region	United States	Ireland
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Electrical Equipment
GICS Sub-Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Electrical Components & Equipment
Market Capitalization	10.35 billion USD	132.76 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	June 1, 1972
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AIT

ETN

GSPC

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
Total Return (1Y)	15.62%	-2.33%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	24.49%	19.68%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	24.56%	17.50%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AIT

ETN

GSPC

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	28.72%	43.57%
Beta (5Y)	0.86	1.14
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-26.42%	-34.46%
Avg. Volume (3M)	295.41K	2.32M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AIT and ETN are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.39	-0.15
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.53	-0.21

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 22.51% and Eaton (ETN) at 19.55% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

22.51%

Max: 40.55%
AIT: 22.51%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

19.55%

Max: 40.55%
ETN: 19.55%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Eaton (ETN) at 12.18% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Applied Industrial (AIT) at 8.39%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

8.39%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
AIT: 8.39%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

12.18%

Max: 27.47%
ETN: 12.18%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 11.12% and Eaton (ETN) at 17.85% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

11.12%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
AIT: 11.12%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

17.85%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
ETN: 17.85%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
ROE (TTM)	22.51%	19.55%
ROA (TTM)	11.43%	7.22%
Net Margin (TTM)	8.39%	12.18%
Operating Margin (TTM)	11.12%	17.85%
Gross Margin (TTM)	30.40%	35.16%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 8.84% and Eaton (ETN) at 10.33% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Eaton (ETN) reports EPS growth of 10.00%, ranked against its industry; Applied Industrial (AIT) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
Revenue Growth (YoY)	8.84%	10.33%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.02%	9.77%
EPS Growth (YoY)	--	10.00%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	7.40%	19.39%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Applied Industrial (AIT) at 2.89 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Eaton (ETN) at 1.23 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for ETN.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

2.89

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
AIT: 2.89
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

1.23

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
ETN: 1.23
Min: 0.36

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Applied Industrial (AIT) at 0.15 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Eaton (ETN) at 1.00 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

0.15

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
AIT: 0.15
Min: 0.00

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

1.00

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
ETN: 1.00
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.89	1.23
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.15	1.00
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.27	2.85

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Eaton (ETN) at 1.33% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while Applied Industrial (AIT) at 0.71% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, ETN the richer one.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

0.71%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
AIT: 0.71%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

1.33%

Max: 2.66%
ETN: 1.33%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Applied Industrial (AIT) at 17.63% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Eaton (ETN) at 43.36% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

17.63%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
AIT: 17.63%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

43.36%

Max: 67.39%
ETN: 43.36%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.71%	1.33%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	17.63%	43.36%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 25.10 and Eaton (ETN) at 34.14 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

25.10

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
AIT: 25.10
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

34.14

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
ETN: 34.14
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Applied Industrial (AIT) at 2.05 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Eaton (ETN) at 4.15 sits in the pricier quartile — ETN costs more per dollar of sales.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

2.05

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
AIT: 2.05
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

4.15

Max: 7.54
ETN: 4.15
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 5.50 and Eaton (ETN) at 6.33 carry a premium to book value versus peers, sitting in the upper P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

AIT

Capital Goods industry group

5.50

Max: 9.66
AIT: 5.50
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

ETN

Capital Goods industry group

6.33

Max: 9.66
ETN: 6.33
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Eaton (ETN): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Eaton (ETN)
Metric	AIT	ETN
P/E Ratio (TTM)	25.10	34.14
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.05	4.15
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	5.50	6.33
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.24%	2.29%