FLS vs. NDSN: Flowserve vs. Nordson Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN) 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

Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN) are both classified in the Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components sub-industry within the broader Machinery industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Company profile comparison for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Profile Item	FLS	NDSN
Name	Flowserve Corporation	Nordson Corporation
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Machinery	Machinery
GICS Sub-Industry	Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components	Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components
Market Capitalization	10.19 billion USD	17.26 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	March 18, 1980
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

FLS

NDSN

GSPC

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN), 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 Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
Total Return (1Y)	24.11%	40.90%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	33.68%	14.93%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	22.48%	5.48%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

FLS

NDSN

GSPC

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN), 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 Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	42.18%	23.53%
Beta (5Y)	1.24	0.98
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-38.76%	-39.15%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.61M	381.48K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FLS and NDSN 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 Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.47	1.56
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.70	2.43

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Flowserve (FLS) at 11.61% and Nordson (NDSN) at 17.76% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

11.61%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
FLS: 11.61%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

17.76%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
NDSN: 17.76%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Nordson (NDSN) at 18.63% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Flowserve (FLS) at 5.42%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

5.42%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
FLS: 5.42%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

18.63%

Max: 27.47%
NDSN: 18.63%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Nordson (NDSN) at 27.40% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Flowserve (FLS) at 13.45%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

13.45%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
FLS: 13.45%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

27.40%

Max: 36.60%
NDSN: 27.40%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
ROE (TTM)	11.61%	17.76%
ROA (TTM)	6.36%	8.47%
Net Margin (TTM)	5.42%	18.63%
Operating Margin (TTM)	13.45%	27.40%
Gross Margin (TTM)	35.30%	55.39%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Flowserve (FLS) at 3.76% and Nordson (NDSN) at 3.78% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Flowserve (FLS) at 23.36% and Nordson (NDSN) at 4.93% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
Revenue Growth (YoY)	3.76%	3.78%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	9.37%	2.53%
EPS Growth (YoY)	23.36%	4.93%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	22.39%	-1.15%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Flowserve (FLS) at 2.10 and Nordson (NDSN) at 1.82 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

2.10

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
FLS: 2.10
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

1.82

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
NDSN: 1.82
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Flowserve (FLS) at 0.95 and Nordson (NDSN) at 0.56 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

0.95

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
FLS: 0.95
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

0.56

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
NDSN: 0.56
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.10	1.82
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.95	0.56
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.08	1.78

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Flowserve (FLS) at 1.11% and Nordson (NDSN) at 1.06% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

1.11%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
FLS: 1.11%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

1.06%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
NDSN: 1.06%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Flowserve (FLS) at 43.50% and Nordson (NDSN) at 33.20% pay out an above-typical share of earnings for their industries, leaving thinner cover if profits dip.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

43.50%

Max: 67.39%
FLS: 43.50%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

33.20%

Max: 67.39%
NDSN: 33.20%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.11%	1.06%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	43.50%	33.20%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Nordson (NDSN) at 31.36 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Flowserve (FLS) at 40.19 sits in the richer quartile — FLS needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

40.19

Max: 59.38
FLS: 40.19
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

31.36

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
NDSN: 31.36
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Flowserve (FLS) at 2.17 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Nordson (NDSN) at 5.79 sits in the pricier quartile — NDSN costs more per dollar of sales.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

2.17

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
FLS: 2.17
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

5.79

Max: 7.54
NDSN: 5.79
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Flowserve (FLS) at 4.40 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Nordson (NDSN) at 5.28 carries an above-peer premium to book — NDSN is pricier on assets.

FLS

Capital Goods industry group

4.40

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
FLS: 4.40
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

NDSN

Capital Goods industry group

5.28

Max: 9.66
NDSN: 5.28
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Flowserve (FLS) vs. Nordson (NDSN): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Flowserve (FLS) and Nordson (NDSN)
Metric	FLS	NDSN
P/E Ratio (TTM)	40.19	31.36
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.17	5.79
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.40	5.28
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.62%	3.56%