Element Solutions Inc vs NUTRIEN LTD., two Chemicals stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Element Solutions sells specialty chemistry for electronics and surface finishes; Nutrien sells fertilizer plus ag retail. Nutrien is the more profitable and the far cheaper of the two: an 8.54% net margin and 9.06% return on equity against Element's 5.32% and 5.41%, a 7.17% free-cash yield against Element's -1.28%, and 1.17 times book against 4.05. Element trades at 73.68 times earnings; Nutrien at a modest 13.09. Nutrien carries no net debt, Element runs 0.75 to equity. The pricing bets are opposite: Element on future growth in electronics, Nutrien on tangible assets and steady agricultural cash.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | ESI | NTR |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $39.83 | $65.42 |
| Market cap | $9.7B | $31.8B |
| Sector | Chemicals | Chemicals |
| Stage | Growth | Mature |
| P/E | 64.2 | 14.0 |
| P/B | 3.53 | 1.25 |
| P/S | 3.47 | 1.18 |
| EV/EBITDA | 21.8 | 5.1 |
| Revenue growth | +13.4% | +1.6% |
| Gross margin | 38.4% | 31.1% |
| Operating margin | 13.3% | 13.9% |
| Net margin | 5.3% | 8.5% |
| Return on equity | 5.4% | 9.1% |
| Return on assets | 2.6% | 4.4% |
| Return on invested capital | 5.3% | 11.1% |
| FCF yield | -1.5% | 6.7% |
| Dividend yield | 0.8% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.75 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 2.68 | 1.34 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 2.48 | 1.87 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 5 / 9 | 8 / 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.