THERMO FISHER SCIENTIFIC INC. vs Waters Corporation, two Scientific Instruments stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Neither balance sheet alarms, Thermo Fisher at 0.89 of debt to equity from years of acquisitions, Waters at a restrained 0.32; the divergence is all in what the income statements are doing. Thermo earns its usual 16.9% operating margin at $191B scale and converts 3.5% of its price into free cash; Waters is printing a negative 3.7% operating line against a positive 11.9% net margin, the accounting signature of a one-time hit inside a healthy instruments franchise. The market prices the recovery above the incumbent, 47.4 times against 28.2. Returns on equity, 13.2% against 3%, measure the distance Waters must travel back. The bigger company is the safer page; the smaller one is the wager that normal returns faster than the multiple fades.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | TMO | WAT |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $512.74 | $374.11 |
| Market cap | $191.3B | $30.7B |
| Sector | Scientific Instruments | Scientific Instruments |
| Stage | Mature | Growth |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +21.6% | — |
| P/E | 28.2 | 47.4 |
| P/B | 3.68 | 2.01 |
| P/S | 4.23 | 8.09 |
| EV/EBITDA | 26.1 | 54.6 |
| Revenue growth | +5.3% | +28.6% |
| Operating margin | 16.9% | -3.7% |
| Net margin | 15.2% | 11.9% |
| Return on equity | 13.2% | 3.0% |
| Return on assets | 6.0% | 1.8% |
| Return on invested capital | 6.4% | 2.4% |
| FCF yield | 3.5% | 1.1% |
| Dividend yield | 0.3% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.89 | 0.32 |
| Current ratio | 1.53 | 1.79 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 7.28 | 2.82 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 5 / 9 | 3 / 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.