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Stock Comparison · Structural lead, mixed market

Johnson & Johnson vs Waters: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

Johnson & Johnson holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across growth and stability. Waters does not offset that deficit through any equally strong structural edge elsewhere. On the market side, Johnson & Johnson is in better shape — its trend is intact while Waters's trend has broken down. That puts structure and market broadly in agreement — Johnson & Johnson's lead looks more confirmed than conflicted.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels.

Updated 2026-04-05

This is not just a one-metric split: both growth and stability materially support the lead. The overall score gap is 19 points in favour of Johnson & Johnson.

Trajectory Similarity
0.73
Similar
Peer-set rank: #4
within Johnson & Johnson's functional peer set

This pair is matched through long-term financial trajectory similarity within the selected peer universe.

A solid similarity means the pair shares a clearly comparable long-term financial profile, even if individual dimensions still differ.

The match is driven mainly by margin consistency and capital structure.

Similarity drivers
margin consistencycapital structure
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
JNJ
Johnson & Johnson
73
Peer-Score
Signal qualityHigh
vs
WAT
Waters Corporation
54
Peer-Score
Signal qualityHigh

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: JNJ vs WAT Profitability 69 71 Stability 86 54 Valuation 69 62 Growth 69 18 JNJ WAT
Gap Ranking
#1 Growth +51
#2 Stability +32
#3 Valuation +7
#4 Profitability +2
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for JNJ and WAT Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer JNJWAT Relative valuation Structural strength

Johnson & Johnson looks stronger on relative valuation, while the broader price setup remains mixed.

Valuation position uses peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Growth
Johnson & Johnson ranks near the top of the group on growth; Waters Corporation sits in the weaker half.
Stability
On stability, the same pattern holds: both are strong, but Johnson & Johnson still leads clearly.
Growth — Dominant Gap
JNJ
69
WAT
18
Gap+51in favour of JNJ

Earnings growth is one contributing factor within the growth lead.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

Waters Corporation still shows lower market-fundamental divergence, which keeps the wider picture mixed rather than completely one-sided.

What this means for the comparison

The lead is built on both growth and stability, making it broader than a single-dimension result.

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the JNJ vs WAT comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

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Similar growth-and-stability comparisons

Explore how JNJ and WAT 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.

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.