NEWMARKET CORPORATION vs PPG INDUSTRIES INC. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Petroleum additives give NewMarket the highest return in this group, a 23.71% return on equity and a 15.25% net margin from small-dose chemistry that reorders steadily. PPG Industries earns 19.2% on equity making paints and coatings, a 9.83% margin, and it is nearly four times larger at $27.7B against $7.4B. PPG trades cheaper at 17.58 times earnings versus 18.04, close, and pays a heavier 2.26% dividend against NewMarket's 1.42%. NewMarket converts more to cash, a 5.87% free-cash yield against 4.44%, and carries less debt at 0.54 versus 0.95. Two profitable specialists, the smaller one running the richer margin.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | NEU | PPG |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $762.64 | $116.74 |
| Market cap | $7.1B | $26.2B |
| Sector | Chemicals | Specialty Chemicals |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | -4.1% | -4.5% |
| P/E | 17.4 | 16.6 |
| P/B | 4.10 | 3.17 |
| P/S | 2.64 | 1.62 |
| EV/EBITDA | 12.2 | 12.4 |
| Revenue growth | -3.5% | +3.0% |
| Gross margin | 33.0% | — |
| Operating margin | 21.4% | 16.2% |
| Net margin | 15.3% | 9.8% |
| Return on equity | 23.7% | 19.2% |
| Return on assets | 11.7% | 7.2% |
| Return on invested capital | 15.4% | 9.6% |
| FCF yield | 6.1% | 4.7% |
| Dividend yield | 1.5% | 2.4% |
| Debt / equity | 0.54 | 0.95 |
| Current ratio | 2.55 | 1.61 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 4.19 | 3.58 |
| 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.