Atkore Inc. vs NOVANTA INC, two Electrical Equipment stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Atkore's electrical conduit business swung to a loss after its pandemic-era pricing normalized, though it still generates 5.48% of its price in free cash flow. Novanta builds precision photonics and motion components, and its earnings are temporarily squeezed, which is why the 113.01 times earnings looks alarming rather than aspirational. Novanta earns 4.1% on equity and converts only 1.06% of price into free cash, thinner than Atkore's cash output even now. Both carry modest debt. The market pays 4.93 times book for Novanta against 2.06 for Atkore, betting the photonics recovery is worth more than a conduit rebound. Novanta at $6.5B is more than double Atkore at $2.6B.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | ATKR | NOVT |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $72.35 | $156.52 |
| Market cap | $2.5B | $6.4B |
| Sector | Electrical Equipment | Electrical Equipment |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | -3.2% | — |
| P/E | — | 112.6 |
| P/B | 1.92 | 4.91 |
| P/S | 0.85 | 6.41 |
| EV/EBITDA | 16.1 | 41.5 |
| Revenue growth | -3.0% | +5.6% |
| Gross margin | 18.6% | 44.1% |
| Operating margin | 1.4% | 10.7% |
| Net margin | -4.2% | 5.3% |
| Return on equity | -9.4% | 4.1% |
| Return on assets | -4.2% | 3.0% |
| Return on invested capital | 1.4% | 4.6% |
| FCF yield | 5.9% | 1.1% |
| Debt / equity | 0.60 | 0.18 |
| Current ratio | 2.64 | 3.56 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 2.78 | 7.25 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 4 / 9 | 7 / 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.