ASHLAND INC. vs Central Garden & Pet Company, two Wholesale stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Where ASH and CENT diverge most: on revenue growth, ASH reads -6.8% and CENT reads +0.1%; on net margin, ASH reads -39.1% and CENT reads 5.4%. The rest of the comparable metrics sit closer together. What ASH's price implies is a somewhat stretched bet versus history (whole-company basis). What CENT's price implies is a bet that sits within the historical range (whole-company basis). The bull and bear cases for each are in their full reports below.
| Metric | ASH | CENT |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $66.34 | $43.27 |
| Market cap | $3.1B | $2.7B |
| Sector | Wholesale | Wholesale |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| P/E | — | 15.7 |
| P/B | 1.64 | 1.62 |
| P/S | 1.69 | 0.85 |
| EV/EBITDA | 12.2 | 9.4 |
| Revenue growth | -6.8% | +0.1% |
| Gross margin | 30.5% | 33.1% |
| Operating margin | 8.1% | 12.6% |
| Net margin | -39.1% | 5.4% |
| Return on equity | -37.9% | 10.4% |
| Return on assets | -15.7% | 4.6% |
| Return on invested capital | 2.7% | 7.0% |
| FCF yield | -6.3% | 10.6% |
| Dividend yield | 2.5% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.74 | 0.72 |
| Current ratio | 3.06 | 3.45 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 6.65 | 7.83 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 4 / 9 | 6 / 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.