CW vs. JCI: Curtiss-Wright vs. Johnson Controls Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI) 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

Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but CW is classified in Aerospace & Defense while JCI is classified in Building Products.

Company profile comparison for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Profile Item	CW	JCI
Name	Curtiss-Wright Corporation	Johnson Controls International plc
Country/Region	United States	Ireland
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Aerospace & Defense	Building Products
GICS Sub-Industry	Aerospace & Defense	Building Products
Market Capitalization	16.81 billion USD	81.79 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	September 28, 1987
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

JCI

GSPC

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI), 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 Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
Total Return (1Y)	-15.83%	17.11%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	33.49%	43.46%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	29.54%	15.29%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

JCI

GSPC

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI), 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 Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	38.26%	32.91%
Beta (5Y)	0.93	1.29
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-45.25%	-42.32%
Avg. Volume (3M)	427.49K	3.57M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CW and JCI 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 Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.53	0.39
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.71	0.54

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 21.82% and Johnson Controls (JCI) at 21.73% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

21.82%

Max: 40.55%
CW: 21.82%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

21.73%

Max: 40.55%
JCI: 21.73%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 14.86% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Johnson Controls (JCI) at 11.12%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

14.86%

Max: 27.47%
CW: 14.86%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

11.12%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
JCI: 11.12%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 19.87% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Johnson Controls (JCI) at 17.21%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

19.87%

Max: 36.60%
CW: 19.87%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

17.21%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
JCI: 17.21%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
ROE (TTM)	21.82%	21.73%
ROA (TTM)	8.90%	6.41%
Net Margin (TTM)	14.86%	11.12%
Operating Margin (TTM)	19.87%	17.21%
Gross Margin (TTM)	38.07%	37.07%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 12.08% and Johnson Controls (JCI) at 2.81% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Johnson Controls (JCI) at 99.60% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 21.99% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for JCI.

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
Revenue Growth (YoY)	12.08%	2.81%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	11.01%	4.57%
EPS Growth (YoY)	21.99%	99.60%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	19.09%	31.94%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 1.42 and Johnson Controls (JCI) at 0.90 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

1.42

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
CW: 1.42
Min: 0.36

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

0.90

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
JCI: 0.90
Min: 0.36

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 0.45 and Johnson Controls (JCI) at 0.68 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

0.45

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
CW: 0.45
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

0.68

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
JCI: 0.68
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.42	0.90
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.45	0.68
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.00	1.86

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Johnson Controls (JCI) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Curtiss-Wright (CW) reports a yield of 0.23%, ranking against industry peers normally.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

0.23%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
CW: 0.23%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
JCI: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 6.67% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Johnson Controls (JCI) at 45.20% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

6.67%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
CW: 6.67%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

45.20%

Max: 67.39%
JCI: 45.20%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.23%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	6.67%	45.20%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 30.92 and Johnson Controls (JCI) at 28.61 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

30.92

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
CW: 30.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

28.61

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
JCI: 28.61
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Johnson Controls (JCI) at 3.19 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 4.50 sits in the pricier quartile — CW costs more per dollar of sales.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

4.50

Max: 7.54
CW: 4.50
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

3.19

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
JCI: 3.19
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both Curtiss-Wright (CW) at 6.64 and Johnson Controls (JCI) at 5.99 carry a premium to book value versus peers, sitting in the upper P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

CW

Capital Goods industry group

6.64

Max: 9.66
CW: 6.64
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

JCI

Capital Goods industry group

5.99

Max: 9.66
JCI: 5.99
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Curtiss-Wright (CW) vs. Johnson Controls (JCI): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Curtiss-Wright (CW) and Johnson Controls (JCI)
Metric	CW	JCI
P/E Ratio (TTM)	30.92	28.61
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.50	3.19
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	6.64	5.99
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	2.86%	3.81%