AME vs. GWW: AMETEK vs. W.W. Grainger Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW) 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

AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but AME is classified in Electrical Equipment while GWW is classified in Trading Companies & Distributors.

Company profile comparison for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Profile Item	AME	GWW
Name	AMETEK, Inc.	W.W. Grainger Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Electrical Equipment	Trading Companies & Distributors
GICS Sub-Industry	Electrical Components & Equipment	Trading Companies & Distributors
Market Capitalization	52.44 billion USD	67.45 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	July 19, 1984	February 21, 1973
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AME

GWW

GSPC

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW), 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

Loading price history…

Trailing total returns for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…

Calendar-year total returns for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
Total Return (1Y)	22.79%	54.07%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	18.31%	24.16%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	12.17%	25.95%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AME

GWW

GSPC

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW), 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

Loading price history…

Distribution of monthly total returns for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	24.96%	24.49%
Beta (5Y)	0.96	0.93
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-27.06%	-24.50%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.45M	250.35K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AME and GWW 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 AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.74	2.03
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.06	3.31

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 52.33% clears its industry range for ROE, a sharper capital-efficiency signal than AMETEK (AME) at 14.68%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

14.68%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
AME: 14.68%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

52.33%

GWW: 52.33%
Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

AMETEK (AME) at 19.91% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 11.17%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

19.91%

Max: 27.47%
AME: 19.91%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

11.17%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
GWW: 11.17%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

AMETEK (AME) at 26.38% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 16.14%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

26.38%

Max: 36.60%
AME: 26.38%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

16.14%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
GWW: 16.14%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
ROE (TTM)	14.68%	52.33%
ROA (TTM)	7.06%	20.34%
Net Margin (TTM)	19.91%	11.17%
Operating Margin (TTM)	26.38%	16.14%
Gross Margin (TTM)	36.97%	39.43%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both AMETEK (AME) at 6.63% and W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 4.51% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both AMETEK (AME) at 7.93% and W.W. Grainger (GWW) at -8.55% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
Revenue Growth (YoY)	6.63%	4.51%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.36%	5.62%
EPS Growth (YoY)	7.93%	-8.55%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	8.50%	5.60%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both AMETEK (AME) at 1.43 and W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 2.61 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

1.43

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
AME: 1.43
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

2.61

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
GWW: 2.61
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both AMETEK (AME) at 0.60 and W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 0.65 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

0.60

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
AME: 0.60
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

0.65

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
GWW: 0.65
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.43	2.61
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.60	0.65
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.41	0.69

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both AMETEK (AME) at 0.60% and W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 0.65% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

0.60%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
AME: 0.60%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

0.65%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
GWW: 0.65%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both AMETEK (AME) at 18.76% and W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 20.87% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

18.76%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
AME: 18.76%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

20.87%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
GWW: 20.87%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.60%	0.65%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	18.76%	20.87%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both AMETEK (AME) at 32.25 and W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 31.66 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

32.25

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
AME: 32.25
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

31.66

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
GWW: 31.66
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 3.48 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while AMETEK (AME) at 6.40 sits in the pricier quartile — AME costs more per dollar of sales.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

6.40

Max: 7.54
AME: 6.40
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

3.48

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
GWW: 3.48
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

AMETEK (AME) at 4.48 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while W.W. Grainger (GWW) at 15.56 prices above its benchmark range — GWW looks rich relative to book.

AME

Capital Goods industry group

4.48

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
AME: 4.48
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

GWW

Capital Goods industry group

15.56

GWW: 15.56
Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

AMETEK (AME) vs. W.W. Grainger (GWW): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for AMETEK (AME) and W.W. Grainger (GWW)
Metric	AME	GWW
P/E Ratio (TTM)	32.25	31.66
P/S Ratio (TTM)	6.40	3.48
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.48	15.56
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	2.89%	1.97%