ITW vs. TDG: Illinois Tool Works vs. TransDigm Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG) 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

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but ITW is classified in Machinery while TDG is classified in Aerospace & Defense.

Company profile comparison for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Profile Item	ITW	TDG
Name	Illinois Tool Works Inc.	TransDigm Group Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Machinery	Aerospace & Defense
GICS Sub-Industry	Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components	Aerospace & Defense
Market Capitalization	79.85 billion USD	66.17 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 13, 1973	March 15, 2006
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

ITW

TDG

GSPC

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG), 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 Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
Total Return (1Y)	20.29%	-3.42%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	10.62%	14.26%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	6.67%	16.86%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

ITW

TDG

GSPC

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG), 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 Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	22.16%	28.03%
Beta (5Y)	0.91	0.94
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-28.05%	-29.05%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.27M	369.72K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

ITW and TDG 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 Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.72	-0.27
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.12	-0.38

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: Illinois Tool Works (ITW) earns 101.65% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; TransDigm (TDG) has no ROE this period.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

101.65%

ITW: 101.65%
Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

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

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): TDG does not report ROE, so it has no value marker; ITW is benchmarked against the Capital Goods industry group.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 19.39% and TransDigm (TDG) at 21.28% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

19.39%

Max: 27.47%
ITW: 19.39%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

21.28%

Max: 27.47%
TDG: 21.28%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

TransDigm (TDG) at 46.01% shows unusually strong operating efficiency — above its industry’s operating margin range — and Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 28.05% also operates in the top quartile.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

28.05%

Max: 36.60%
ITW: 28.05%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

46.01%

TDG: 46.01%
Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
ROE (TTM)	101.65%	--
ROA (TTM)	17.13%	11.82%
Net Margin (TTM)	19.39%	21.28%
Operating Margin (TTM)	28.05%	46.01%
Gross Margin (TTM)	44.32%	59.82%

Growth

Revenue Growth

TransDigm (TDG) at 11.22% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 0.92% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at -10.42% and TransDigm (TDG) at 25.21% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
Revenue Growth (YoY)	0.92%	11.22%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	0.23%	17.61%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-10.42%	25.21%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	2.40%	33.78%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

TransDigm (TDG) at 3.02 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 1.29 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

1.29

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
ITW: 1.29
Min: 0.36

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

3.02

Max: 5.22
TDG: 3.02
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Only one side’s leverage can be read here: Illinois Tool Works (ITW) carries debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98 against its industry range, while TransDigm (TDG) reports no figure this period.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

2.98

ITW: 2.98
Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00
TDG: --

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): TDG does not report debt-to-equity ratio, so it has no value marker; ITW is benchmarked against the Capital Goods industry group.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.29	3.02
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.98	--
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.76	6.03

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

TransDigm (TDG) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports a yield of 2.29%, ranking against industry peers normally.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

2.29%

Max: 2.66%
ITW: 2.29%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

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

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

TransDigm (TDG) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports a payout of 58.43%, ranking against industry peers normally.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

58.43%

Max: 67.39%
ITW: 58.43%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

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

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.29%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	58.43%	0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 25.06 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while TransDigm (TDG) at 36.31 sits in the richer quartile — TDG needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

25.06

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
ITW: 25.06
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

36.31

Max: 59.38
TDG: 36.31
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 4.80 and TransDigm (TDG) at 6.61 command a richer price per dollar of sales than most peers, sitting in the upper P/S ratio quartile of their industries.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

4.80

Max: 7.54
ITW: 4.80
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

6.61

Max: 7.54
TDG: 6.61
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

TransDigm (TDG) reports a negative P/B ratio of -6.74, meaning negative book equity — the multiple itself is not meaningful for valuation. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports 25.42, ranking against industry peers normally.

ITW

Capital Goods industry group

25.42

ITW: 25.42
Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

TDG

Capital Goods industry group

-6.74

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08
TDG: -6.74

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) vs. TransDigm (TDG): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and TransDigm (TDG)
Metric	ITW	TDG
P/E Ratio (TTM)	25.06	36.31
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.80	6.61
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	25.42	-6.74
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	2.89%	2.20%