AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES, INC. vs THERMO FISHER SCIENTIFIC INC., two Scientific Instruments stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Agilent and Thermo Fisher both sell to laboratories, but they are different animals: Agilent is an instruments-and-consumables specialist, Thermo Fisher a $191B general store for science assembled through years of acquisitions. Focus is winning the margin contest at the moment, Agilent's 21.7% operating margin against Thermo's 16.9%, with the return on assets nearly double, 10.8% to 6.1%. The acquisition engine shows up on Thermo's balance sheet as 0.89 of debt to equity versus Agilent's 0.47. Yet the market prices them within a point of each other, 27.3 and 28.2 times earnings, effectively declining to choose between breadth and focus. At the same multiple, the buyer is picking a temperament rather than a discount.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | A | TMO |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $135.99 | $512.74 |
| Market cap | $38.5B | $191.3B |
| Sector | Scientific Instruments | Scientific Instruments |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | — | +21.6% |
| P/E | 27.3 | 28.2 |
| P/B | 5.40 | 3.68 |
| P/S | 5.32 | 4.23 |
| EV/EBITDA | 24.7 | 26.1 |
| Revenue growth | +9.1% | +5.3% |
| Operating margin | 21.7% | 16.9% |
| Net margin | 19.6% | 15.2% |
| Return on equity | 19.9% | 13.2% |
| Return on assets | 10.8% | 6.0% |
| Return on invested capital | 12.3% | 6.4% |
| FCF yield | 2.8% | 3.5% |
| Dividend yield | 0.7% | 0.3% |
| Debt / equity | 0.47 | 0.89 |
| Current ratio | 2.10 | 1.53 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 4.95 | 7.28 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 6 / 9 | 5 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.