Reviewing IDEX (NYSE:IEX) and DNOW (NYSE:DNOW)

IDEX (NYSE:IEX) and DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) are both industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, earnings and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares IDEX and DNOW’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
IDEX	13.98%	15.03%	8.70%
DNOW	-2.66%	7.26%	4.68%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for IDEX and DNOW, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
IDEX	0	3	6	0	2.67
DNOW	2	0	2	0	2.00

IDEX currently has a consensus price target of $226.80, suggesting a potential upside of 19.19%. DNOW has a consensus price target of $17.00, suggesting a potential upside of 40.67%. Given DNOW’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe DNOW is more favorable than IDEX.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

98.0% of IDEX shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.6% of DNOW shares are held by institutional investors. 0.5% of IDEX shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of DNOW shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares IDEX and DNOW”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
IDEX	$3.46 billion	4.09	$483.20 million	$6.41	29.68
DNOW	$2.82 billion	0.80	-$89.00 million	($0.29)	-41.67

IDEX has higher revenue and earnings than DNOW. DNOW is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than IDEX, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

IDEX has a beta of 0.99, indicating that its stock price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, DNOW has a beta of 0.79, indicating that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

IDEX beats DNOW on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About IDEX

IDEX Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides applied solutions worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Fluid & Metering Technologies (FMT), Health & Science Technologies (HST), and Fire & Safety/Diversified Products (FSDP). The FMT segment designs, produces, and distributes positive displacement pumps, valves, small volume provers, flow meters, injectors, and other fluid-handling pump modules and systems, as well as flow monitoring and other services for the food, chemical, general industrial, water and wastewater, agricultural, and energy industries. The HST segment designs, produces, and distributes precision fluidics positive displacement pumps, powder and liquid processing technologies, drying systems, micro-precision components, pneumatic components and sealing solutions, high performance molded and extruded sealing components, custom mechanical and shaft seals, engineered hygienic mixers and valves, biocompatible medical devices and implantables, air compressors and blowers, optical components and coatings, laboratory and commercial equipment, and precision photonic solutions. This segment serves food and beverage, life sciences, analytical instruments, pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical, industrial, semiconductor, automotive/transportation, medical/dental, energy, cosmetics, marine, chemical, wastewater and water treatment, research and aerospace/defense markets. The FSDP segment designs, produces, and distributes firefighting pumps, valves and controls, rescue tools, lifting bags, and other components and systems for the fire and rescue industry; engineered stainless steel banding and clamping devices for various industrial and commercial applications; and precision equipment for dispensing, metering, and mixing colorants and paints used in retail and commercial businesses. IDEX Corporation was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois.

About DNOW

DNOW Inc. distributes downstream energy and industrial products for petroleum refining, chemical processing, LNG terminals, power generation utilities, and customer on-site locations in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides consumable maintenance, repair, and operating supplies; pipes, manual and automated valves, fittings, flanges, gaskets, fasteners, electrical instrumentations, artificial lift, pumping solutions, valve actuation and modular process, and measurement and control equipment; and mill supplies, tools, safety supplies, and personal protective equipment, as well as artificial lift systems, coatings, and miscellaneous expendable items. It also offers original equipment manufacturer equipment, including pumps, generator sets, air compressors, dryers, blowers, mixers, and valves; modular oil and gas tank battery solutions; and application systems, work processes, parts integration, optimization solutions, and after-sales support services. In addition, the company provides supply chain and materials management; inventory planning and management, procurement, and warehouse management, as well as solutions for logistics, point of issue technology, project management, business process, and performance metrics reporting services. It serves customers in the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors of the energy industry, including drilling contractors, well-servicing companies, independent and national oil and gas companies, midstream operators, and refineries, as well as petrochemical, chemical, utilities, RNG facilities, and other downstream energy processors; and industrial and manufacturing companies. The company was formerly known as NOW Inc. and changed its name to DNOW Inc. in January 2024. DNOW Inc. was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.