IES Holdings, Inc. vs JACOBS SOLUTIONS INC., two Engineering & Construction stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Where IESC and J diverge most: on debt / equity, IESC reads 0.00 and J reads 1.10; on return on assets, IESC reads 19.9% and J reads 2.9%. The rest of the comparable metrics sit closer together. On valuation, today's IESC price has a different growth bar priced in than J (+11.2% implied for IESC vs +21.2% for J); the higher figure is the steeper assumption to clear, not a better or worse stock. What IESC's price implies is a bet that sits within the historical range (whole-company basis). What J's price implies is a somewhat stretched bet versus history (whole-company basis). The bull and bear cases for each are in their full reports below.
| Metric | IESC | J |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $297.71 | $139.30 |
| Market cap | $6.0B | $16.6B |
| Sector | Engineering & Construction | Engineering & Construction |
| Stage | Growth | Growth |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +11.2% | +21.2% |
| P/E | 13.2 | 49.6 |
| P/B | 4.89 | 5.07 |
| P/S | 1.51 | 1.16 |
| EV/EBITDA | 11.1 | 24.4 |
| Revenue growth | +22.1% | +20.1% |
| Gross margin | 27.4% | 19.9% |
| Operating margin | 14.4% | 7.0% |
| Net margin | 11.3% | 2.4% |
| Return on equity | 36.8% | 10.4% |
| Return on assets | 19.9% | 2.9% |
| Return on invested capital | 31.7% | 5.4% |
| FCF yield | 3.8% | 3.9% |
| Dividend yield | — | 0.2% |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 1.10 |
| Current ratio | 1.63 | 1.29 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 6.50 | 7.52 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 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.