AIT vs. HWM: Applied Industrial vs. Howmet Aerospace Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) 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 Howmet Aerospace (HWM) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but AIT is classified in Trading Companies & Distributors while HWM is classified in Aerospace & Defense.

Company profile comparison for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Profile Item	AIT	HWM
Name	Applied Industrial Technologies Inc.	Howmet Aerospace Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Aerospace & Defense
GICS Sub-Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Aerospace & Defense
Market Capitalization	10.35 billion USD	81.84 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	November 1, 2016
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AIT

HWM

GSPC

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM), 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 Howmet Aerospace (HWM). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
Total Return (1Y)	15.62%	5.06%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	24.49%	64.83%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	24.56%	46.04%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AIT

HWM

GSPC

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM), 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 Howmet Aerospace (HWM). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	28.72%	37.60%
Beta (5Y)	0.86	1.27
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-26.42%	-36.47%
Avg. Volume (3M)	295.41K	3.47M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AIT and HWM 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 Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.39	0.02
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.53	0.03

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 22.51% and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 37.65% 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%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

37.65%

Max: 40.55%
HWM: 37.65%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

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

Net Margin (TTM)

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 21.10% 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%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

21.10%

Max: 27.47%
HWM: 21.10%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

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

Operating Margin (TTM)

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 28.78% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Applied Industrial (AIT) at 11.12%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

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%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

28.78%

Max: 36.60%
HWM: 28.78%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

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

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
ROE (TTM)	22.51%	37.65%
ROA (TTM)	11.43%	13.97%
Net Margin (TTM)	8.39%	21.10%
Operating Margin (TTM)	11.12%	28.78%
Gross Margin (TTM)	30.40%	36.63%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 8.84% and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 11.06% 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. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Howmet Aerospace (HWM) reports EPS growth of 32.03%, ranked against its industry; Applied Industrial (AIT) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
Revenue Growth (YoY)	8.84%	11.06%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.02%	13.37%
EPS Growth (YoY)	--	32.03%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	7.40%	49.51%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 2.89 and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 1.86 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

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

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

1.86

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
HWM: 1.86
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): 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 Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 0.80 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

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

0.80

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
HWM: 0.80
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Applied Industrial (AIT) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): 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 Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.89	1.86
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.15	0.80
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.27	1.35

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 0.71% and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 0.25% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

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%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

0.25%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
HWM: 0.25%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Applied Industrial (AIT) at 17.63% and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 9.80% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

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%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

9.80%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
HWM: 9.80%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.71%	0.25%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	17.63%	9.80%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Applied Industrial (AIT) at 25.10 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 40.35 sits in the richer quartile — HWM needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

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

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

40.35

Max: 59.38
HWM: 40.35
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

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

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Applied Industrial (AIT) at 2.05 prices around its industry’s typical P/S ratio, while Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 8.41 clears its benchmark range — HWM looks notably rich on 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

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

8.41

HWM: 8.41
Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

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

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Applied Industrial (AIT) at 5.50 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 14.20 prices even higher, above its industry range.

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

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

14.20

HWM: 14.20
Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

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

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Applied Industrial (AIT) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	AIT	HWM
P/E Ratio (TTM)	25.10	40.35
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.05	8.41
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	5.50	14.20
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.24%	1.58%