SYM vs. WAB: Symbotic vs. Wabtec Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB) 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

Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB) both belong to the Machinery industry, though SYM is classified under Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components while WAB falls under Construction Machinery & Heavy Transportation Equipment.

Wabtec (WAB) has more than two decades of public-market history since June 16, 1995, whereas Symbotic (SYM) listed on March 9, 2021 and has a much shorter record to draw on.

Company profile comparison for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Profile Item	SYM	WAB
Name	Symbotic Inc. Class A Common Stock	Wabtec 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	Construction Machinery & Heavy Transportation Equipment
Market Capitalization	22.29 billion USD	47.59 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	NYSE
Listing Date	March 9, 2021	June 16, 1995
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

SYM

WAB

GSPC

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB), 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 Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
Total Return (1Y)	-44.66%	44.64%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	6.78%	39.37%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	30.90%	25.90%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

SYM

WAB

GSPC

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB), 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 Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Symbotic (SYM) carries a highly aggressive beta of 2.05, indicating much higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, whereas Wabtec (WAB) is closer to market-like at 0.91 — a noticeable difference in market-sensitivity profile.

Risk profile metrics for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	78.15%	27.53%
Beta (5Y)	2.05	0.91
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-72.46%	-23.55%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.61M	890.96K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

SYM and WAB 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 Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.63	1.47
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.93	2.34

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Symbotic (SYM) at 4.39% and Wabtec (WAB) at 12.24% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

4.39%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
SYM: 4.39%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

12.24%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
WAB: 12.24%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Wabtec (WAB) at 11.20% keeps about the industry-typical share of revenue as profit, while Symbotic (SYM) at 0.31% retains only a bottom-quartile share.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

0.31%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
SYM: 0.31%
Min: -12.89%

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

11.20%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
WAB: 11.20%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Wabtec (WAB) at 20.22% carries a top-quartile operating margin, while Symbotic (SYM) at 4.59% operates in the bottom quartile.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

4.59%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
SYM: 4.59%
Min: -12.63%

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

20.22%

Max: 36.60%
WAB: 20.22%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
ROE (TTM)	4.39%	12.24%
ROA (TTM)	0.32%	6.28%
Net Margin (TTM)	0.31%	11.20%
Operating Margin (TTM)	4.59%	20.22%
Gross Margin (TTM)	21.27%	36.17%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Symbotic (SYM) at 25.65% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Wabtec (WAB) at 7.51% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for SYM.

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Wabtec (WAB) reports EPS growth of 13.08%, ranked against its industry; Symbotic (SYM) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
Revenue Growth (YoY)	25.65%	7.51%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	55.87%	10.12%
EPS Growth (YoY)	--	13.08%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	25.44%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Symbotic (SYM) at 1.33 and Wabtec (WAB) at 1.10 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

1.33

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
SYM: 1.33
Min: 0.36

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

1.10

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
WAB: 1.10
Min: 0.36

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Symbotic (SYM) at 0.02 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Wabtec (WAB) at 0.60 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

0.02

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
SYM: 0.02
Min: 0.00

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

0.60

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
WAB: 0.60
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.33	1.10
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.02	0.60
Net Debt / EBITDA	-30.44	2.28

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Symbotic (SYM) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Wabtec (WAB) reports a yield of 0.42%, ranking against industry peers normally.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

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

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

0.42%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
WAB: 0.42%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Symbotic (SYM) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Wabtec (WAB) reports a payout of 14.66%, ranking against industry peers normally.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

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

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

14.66%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
WAB: 14.66%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	0.42%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	0.00%	14.66%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Wabtec (WAB) at 35.23 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Symbotic (SYM) at 460.25 sits above its peer range — an unusually expensive price for SYM’s trailing earnings.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

460.25

SYM: 460.25
Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

35.23

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
WAB: 35.23
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both look expensive on sales: Wabtec (WAB) at 3.90 sits in the upper P/S ratio quartile, and Symbotic (SYM) at 8.42 prices even higher, above its industry range.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

8.42

SYM: 8.42
Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

3.90

Max: 7.54
WAB: 3.90
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Wabtec (WAB) at 4.20 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Symbotic (SYM) at 6.70 carries an above-peer premium to book — SYM is pricier on assets.

SYM

Capital Goods industry group

6.70

Max: 9.66
SYM: 6.70
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

WAB

Capital Goods industry group

4.20

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
WAB: 4.20
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Symbotic (SYM) vs. Wabtec (WAB): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Symbotic (SYM) and Wabtec (WAB)
Metric	SYM	WAB
P/E Ratio (TTM)	460.25	35.23
P/S Ratio (TTM)	8.42	3.90
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	6.70	4.20
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	2.46%	2.60%