GNRC vs. WWD: Generac vs. Woodward Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD) 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

Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but GNRC is classified in Electrical Equipment while WWD is classified in Aerospace & Defense.

Company profile comparison for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Profile Item	GNRC	WWD
Name	Generac Holdings Inc.	Woodward, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Electrical Equipment	Aerospace & Defense
GICS Sub-Industry	Electrical Components & Equipment	Aerospace & Defense
Market Capitalization	10.43 billion USD	18.74 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	February 11, 2010	April 4, 1994
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

GNRC

WWD

GSPC

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD), 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 Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
Total Return (1Y)	23.38%	25.66%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	23.05%	36.83%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	-15.31%	23.54%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

GNRC

WWD

GSPC

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD), 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 Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	59.48%	40.29%
Beta (5Y)	1.84	0.87
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-81.73%	-37.25%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.22M	665.85K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

GNRC and WWD 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 Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.32	0.53
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.50	0.85

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Woodward (WWD) at 22.34% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Generac (GNRC) at 10.64% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for WWD.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

10.64%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
GNRC: 10.64%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

22.34%

Max: 40.55%
WWD: 22.34%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Woodward (WWD) at 13.17% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Generac (GNRC) at 6.52%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

6.52%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
GNRC: 6.52%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

13.17%

Max: 27.47%
WWD: 13.17%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Generac (GNRC) at 11.67% and Woodward (WWD) at 17.76% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

11.67%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
GNRC: 11.67%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

17.76%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
WWD: 17.76%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
ROE (TTM)	10.64%	22.34%
ROA (TTM)	4.24%	8.62%
Net Margin (TTM)	6.52%	13.17%
Operating Margin (TTM)	11.67%	17.76%
Gross Margin (TTM)	38.18%	29.63%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Woodward (WWD) at 7.30% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Generac (GNRC) at -2.02% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Woodward (WWD) at 19.63% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Generac (GNRC) at -50.09% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
Revenue Growth (YoY)	-2.02%	7.30%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-2.67%	14.40%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-50.09%	19.63%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	-20.83%	38.44%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Generac (GNRC) at 1.97 and Woodward (WWD) at 1.65 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

1.97

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
GNRC: 1.97
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

1.65

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
WWD: 1.65
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Generac (GNRC) at 0.47 and Woodward (WWD) at 0.56 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

0.47

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
GNRC: 0.47
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

0.56

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

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.97	1.65
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.47	0.56
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.65	1.13

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Generac (GNRC) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Woodward (WWD) reports a yield of 0.32%, ranking against industry peers normally.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

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

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

0.32%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
WWD: 0.32%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Generac (GNRC) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Woodward (WWD) reports a payout of 13.35%, ranking against industry peers normally.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
GNRC: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

13.35%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
WWD: 13.35%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	0.32%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	0.00%	13.35%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Generac (GNRC) at 34.87 and Woodward (WWD) at 35.30 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

34.87

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
GNRC: 34.87
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

35.30

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
WWD: 35.30
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Generac (GNRC) at 2.26 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Woodward (WWD) at 4.47 sits in the pricier quartile — WWD costs more per dollar of sales.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

2.26

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
GNRC: 2.26
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

4.47

Max: 7.54
WWD: 4.47
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Generac (GNRC) at 3.46 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Woodward (WWD) at 7.60 carries an above-peer premium to book — WWD is pricier on assets.

GNRC

Capital Goods industry group

3.46

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
GNRC: 3.46
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

WWD

Capital Goods industry group

7.60

Max: 9.66
WWD: 7.60
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Generac (GNRC) vs. Woodward (WWD): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Generac (GNRC) and Woodward (WWD)
Metric	GNRC	WWD
P/E Ratio (TTM)	34.87	35.30
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.26	4.47
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	3.46	7.60
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.21%	1.00%