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LOW vs. W: Lowe's vs. Wayfair Stock Comparison

How do Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W) 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

Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W) both belong to the Specialty Retail industry, though LOW is classified under Home Improvement Retail while W falls under Homefurnishing Retail.

Company profile comparison for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
Profile ItemLOWW
NameLowe's Companies, Inc.Wayfair Inc. Class A Common Stock
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorConsumer DiscretionaryConsumer Discretionary
GICS Industry GroupConsumer Discretionary Distribution & RetailConsumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail
GICS IndustrySpecialty RetailSpecialty Retail
GICS Sub-IndustryHome Improvement RetailHomefurnishing Retail
Market Capitalization125.98 billion USD15.29 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateMarch 17, 1980October 2, 2014
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

LOW
W
GSPC
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W), 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 Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
Total Return (1Y)1.84%11.13%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)9.02%40.48%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)1.87%-13.87%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

LOW
W
GSPC
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W), 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 Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Wayfair (W) carries a highly aggressive beta of 3.07, indicating much higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, whereas Lowe's (LOW) is closer to market-like at 0.78 — a noticeable difference in market-sensitivity profile.

Risk profile metrics for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)30.08%69.34%
Beta (5Y)0.783.07
Max Drawdown (5Y)-36.85%-91.36%
Avg. Volume (3M)3.23M2.27M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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LOW and W 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 Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)-0.080.10
Sortino Ratio (1Y)-0.130.16

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Neither Lowe's (LOW) nor Wayfair (W) reports a ROE value for this period, so a direct comparison isn’t possible.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

--

Max
62.17%
Q3
29.44%
Median
15.69%
Q1
6.73%
Min
-12.16%
LOW
--

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

--

Max
62.17%
Q3
29.44%
Median
15.69%
Q1
6.73%
Min
-12.16%
W
--
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): Neither stock reports ROE, so the chart shows available benchmark boxes without value markers.

Net Margin (TTM)

Wayfair (W) reports a negative net margin of -1.21%, usually indicating a net loss over the period. Meanwhile Lowe's (LOW) reports 7.35%, ranking against industry peers normally.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

7.35%

Max
16.94%
Q3
8.69%
LOW
7.35%
Median
3.55%
Q1
1.14%
Min
-9.41%

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

-1.21%

Max
16.94%
Q3
8.69%
Median
3.55%
Q1
1.14%
W
-1.21%
Min
-9.41%
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their net margin against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Lowe's (LOW) at 13.37% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Wayfair (W) at 3.10%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

13.37%

Max
21.45%
LOW
13.37%
Q3
10.89%
Median
5.57%
Q1
2.28%
Min
-7.12%

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

3.10%

Max
21.45%
Q3
10.89%
Median
5.57%
W
3.10%
Q1
2.28%
Min
-7.12%
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their operating margin against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
ROE (TTM)----
ROA (TTM)12.52%5.86%
Net Margin (TTM)7.35%-1.21%
Operating Margin (TTM)13.37%3.10%
Gross Margin (TTM)32.99%29.95%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Lowe's (LOW) at 3.12% and Wayfair (W) at 5.11% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Lowe's (LOW) reports EPS growth of -3.11%, ranked against its industry; Wayfair (W) has no EPS growth figure this period.

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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
Revenue Growth (YoY)3.12%5.11%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)-3.85%0.65%
EPS Growth (YoY)-3.11%--
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)5.23%--

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Lowe's (LOW) at 1.11 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Wayfair (W) at 0.67 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for W.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

1.11

Max
2.62
Q3
1.75
Median
1.35
LOW
1.11
Q1
1.00
Min
0.48

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

0.67

Max
2.62
Q3
1.75
Median
1.35
Q1
1.00
W
0.67
Min
0.48
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their current ratio against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Neither Lowe's (LOW) nor Wayfair (W) reports a debt-to-equity ratio value for this period, so a direct comparison isn’t possible.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

--

Max
3.93
Q3
2.14
Median
1.25
Q1
0.73
Min
0.01
LOW
--

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

--

Max
3.93
Q3
2.14
Median
1.25
Q1
0.73
Min
0.01
W
--
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): Neither stock reports debt-to-equity ratio, so the chart shows available benchmark boxes without value markers.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
Current Ratio (MRQ)1.110.67
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA3.056.93

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Wayfair (W) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Lowe's (LOW) reports a yield of 2.13%, ranking against industry peers normally.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

2.13%

Max
5.84%
Q3
2.50%
LOW
2.13%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

0.00%

Max
5.84%
Q3
2.50%
W
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Wayfair (W) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Lowe's (LOW) reports a payout of 41.00%, ranking against industry peers normally.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

41.00%

Max
72.73%
LOW
41.00%
Q3
32.44%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

0.00%

Max
72.73%
Q3
32.44%
W
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
Dividend Yield (TTM)2.13%0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)41.00%0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: Lowe's (LOW) trades at 18.98 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while Wayfair (W) has no P/E ratio this period.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

18.98

Max
40.50
Q3
24.26
Median
19.23
LOW
18.98
Q1
12.64
Min
4.67

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

--

Max
40.50
Q3
24.26
Median
19.23
Q1
12.64
Min
4.67
W
--
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): W does not report P/E ratio, so it has no value marker; LOW is benchmarked against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Lowe's (LOW) at 1.39 and Wayfair (W) at 1.16 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

1.39

Max
4.32
Q3
1.99
LOW
1.39
Median
0.70
Q1
0.26
Min
0.03

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

1.16

Max
4.32
Q3
1.99
W
1.16
Median
0.70
Q1
0.26
Min
0.03
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Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both Lowe's (LOW) at -16.94 and Wayfair (W) at -5.43 report negative P/B ratio values, meaning both companies have negative book equity — neither multiple is meaningful for valuation.

LOW

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

-16.94

Max
10.96
Q3
5.26
Median
2.16
Q1
1.08
Min
-4.45
LOW
-16.94

W

Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group

-5.43

Max
10.96
Q3
5.26
Median
2.16
Q1
1.08
Min
-4.45
W
-5.43
Loading chart…
Lowe's (LOW) vs. Wayfair (W): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Consumer Discretionary Distribution & Retail industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Lowe's (LOW) and Wayfair (W)
MetricLOWW
P/E Ratio (TTM)18.98--
P/S Ratio (TTM)1.391.16
P/B Ratio (MRQ)-16.94-5.43
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)3.66%3.12%