Home Compare IP vs WDC
Stock Comparison · Structural lead, mixed market

International Paper Company vs Western Digital: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

Western Digital holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across growth and profitability. International Paper Company still has the edge on valuation, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. On the market side, Western Digital is in better shape — its trend is intact while International Paper Company's trend has broken down. That puts structure and market broadly in agreement — Western Digital's lead looks more confirmed than conflicted.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Both peer scores are relative to the S&P 500 universe, making them directly comparable.

Updated 2026-05-17

The clearest separation starts in growth, but profitability adds another real layer to the result. The overall score gap is 18 points in favour of Western Digital Corporation.

Trajectory Similarity
0.54
Loose match
Peer-set rank: #32
within International Paper Company's functional peer set

These two companies are linked by measured long-term financial trajectory similarity within the selected peer universe.

A loose similarity means the comparison is still methodologically valid, but the structural overlap is limited.

The clearest structural overlap shows up in recent revenue growth and capital structure.

Similarity drivers
recent revenue growthcapital structure
What reduces the match
revenue growth trajectory
How to read the score
0.85–1.00 · Very similar0.70–0.84 · Similar0.55–0.69 · Moderately similarbelow 0.55 · Loose match
Peer-Relative Score
IP
International Paper Company
41
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: S&P 500
vs
WDC
Western Digital Corporation
59
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: S&P 500

Scores reflect position relative to comparable companies with similar long-term financial trajectories.

The largest gaps do not all point in the same direction.

Dimension spread: IP vs WDC Profitability 9 61 Stability 36 30 Valuation 86 59 Growth 26 88 IP WDC
Gap Ranking
#1 Growth +62
#2 Profitability +52
#3 Valuation +27
#4 Stability +6
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for IP and WDC Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer IPWDC Relative valuation Structural strength

Western Digital Corporation occupies the cheaper side of the setup map, although International Paper Company still holds the stronger structural profile.

Valuation position uses Forward P/E and peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Entry today — historical context

Where IP and WDC each sit in their own 5-year price and valuation history.

BASED ON 5-YEAR HISTORY IP Lower · near norm 0th 50th 100th 88 pct gap WDC Elevated · above norm 0th 50th 100th 12th 99th
Today IP sits in the lower portion of its own 5-year history (12th percentile), while WDC sits higher in its own history (99th). Within each stock's own 5-year context, IP is at a historically more favourable entry position than WDC. This reflects entry timing, not which company is structurally stronger — peer-relative analysis is a separate question addressed above.

Describes historical entry positioning only. Descriptive — not investment advice.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Growth
On growth, Western Digital Corporation ranks near the top of the group; International Paper Company sits in the weaker half.
Profitability
Western Digital Corporation sits in the stronger part of the group on profitability, while International Paper Company is closer to mid-pack.
Growth — Dominant Gap
IP
26
WDC
88
Gap+62in favour of WDC

Revenue growth reinforces the category-level growth lead.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

Absolute pricing still looks more supportive for International Paper Company, with a forward P/E that is 16.4 turns lower there.

What this means for the comparison

The lead is built on both growth and profitability — though valuation still provides a counterweight.

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the IP vs WDC comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

Explore full breakdown →
Other comparisons with conflicting dimension signals

Explore how IP and WDC each compare against other companies in their peer groups.

Rule-based, descriptive analysis only. Derived from peer percentile dimensions. Not investment advice. Peer groups are determined algorithmically based on structural similarity — not by sector classification alone.

How AssetNext Peer Scores Work

AssetNext scores reflect each company's structural position within its functional peer group — not a ranking against all stocks simultaneously. Peers are identified by similarity across eight financial dimensions, including revenue growth trajectory, margin structure, capital intensity, and earnings stability. A score of 75 means the company ranks in the top quartile within its own peer group, not the entire market.

Four dimension scores drive the overall peer score: Growth (revenue trajectory and expansion dynamics), Quality (margin structure and capital efficiency), Valuation (peer-relative pricing on standard multiples), and Stability (earnings consistency and financial predictability). Each dimension is scored 0–100 relative to the peer group, then combined into an overall peer score using equal weighting.

Because scores are peer-relative, the same company can have slightly different scores in different index universes. On comparison pages, both companies are shown within their shared peer universe wherever possible — so the scores are directly comparable. The peer basis is stated on each score card.

Scores are recalculated periodically as underlying financial data is updated. All analysis is descriptive and rule-based — AssetNext describes structural realities and never issues buy, sell or hold recommendations.