GGG vs. LECO: Graco vs. Lincoln Electric Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO) 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

Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO) 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 Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Profile Item	GGG	LECO
Name	Graco Inc.	Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc.
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	10.88 billion USD	14.91 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	April 7, 1994
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

GGG

LECO

GSPC

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO), 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 Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
Total Return (1Y)	-12.76%	27.30%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	-1.59%	17.31%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	-1.14%	16.33%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

GGG

LECO

GSPC

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO), 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 Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	26.08%	31.13%
Beta (5Y)	0.87	1.17
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-29.55%	-34.29%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.99M	409.99K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

GGG and LECO 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 Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.65	0.74
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.80	1.11

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Graco (GGG) at 20.38% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 38.75% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

20.38%

Max: 40.55%
GGG: 20.38%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

38.75%

Max: 40.55%
LECO: 38.75%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Graco (GGG) at 22.40% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 12.40% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

22.40%

Max: 27.47%
GGG: 22.40%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

12.40%

Max: 27.47%
LECO: 12.40%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Graco (GGG) at 25.26% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 18.29%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

25.26%

Max: 36.60%
GGG: 25.26%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

18.29%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
LECO: 18.29%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
ROE (TTM)	20.38%	38.75%
ROA (TTM)	12.02%	13.32%
Net Margin (TTM)	22.40%	12.40%
Operating Margin (TTM)	25.26%	18.29%
Gross Margin (TTM)	51.96%	35.54%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Graco (GGG) at 5.83% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 5.60% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Graco (GGG) at 9.22% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 14.36% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
Revenue Growth (YoY)	5.83%	5.60%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	1.43%	4.02%
EPS Growth (YoY)	9.22%	14.36%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	5.01%	5.05%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Graco (GGG) at 2.13 and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 1.91 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

2.13

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
GGG: 2.13
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

1.91

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
LECO: 1.91
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Graco (GGG) at 0.07 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 0.78 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

0.07

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
GGG: 0.07
Min: 0.00

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

0.78

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
LECO: 0.78
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.13	1.91
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.07	0.78
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.03	1.00

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Graco (GGG) at 1.74% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 1.16% offer top-quartile dividend income relative to share price within their industries.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

1.74%

Max: 2.66%
GGG: 1.74%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

1.16%

Max: 2.66%
LECO: 1.16%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Graco (GGG) at 37.42% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 30.30% pay out an above-typical share of earnings for their industries, leaving thinner cover if profits dip.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

37.42%

Max: 67.39%
GGG: 37.42%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

30.30%

Max: 67.39%
LECO: 30.30%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.74%	1.16%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	37.42%	30.30%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Graco (GGG) at 21.89 and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 26.40 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

21.89

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
GGG: 21.89
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

26.40

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
LECO: 26.40
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 3.21 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Graco (GGG) at 4.71 sits in the pricier quartile — GGG costs more per dollar of sales.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

4.71

Max: 7.54
GGG: 4.71
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

3.21

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
LECO: 3.21
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Graco (GGG) at 4.41 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 9.59 carries an above-peer premium to book — LECO is pricier on assets.

GGG

Capital Goods industry group

4.41

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
GGG: 4.41
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

9.59

Max: 9.66
LECO: 9.59
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Graco (GGG) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Graco (GGG) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	GGG	LECO
P/E Ratio (TTM)	21.89	26.40
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.71	3.21
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.41	9.59
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.94%	2.68%