Home Compare WWD vs XYL
Stock Comparison · Structural lead, mixed market

Woodward vs Xylem: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

Woodward holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across growth and profitability. Xylem still has the edge on valuation, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. On the market side, Woodward is in better shape — its trend is intact while Xylem's trend has broken down. That puts structure and market broadly in agreement — Woodward'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 Russell 1000 universe, making them directly comparable.

Updated 2026-05-17

This is not just a one-metric split: both growth and profitability materially support the lead. The overall score gap is 11 points in favour of Woodward, Inc..

Trajectory Similarity
0.72
Similar
Peer-set rank: #69
within Woodward, Inc.'s functional peer set

This comparison is anchored in long-term financial trajectory similarity within the selected peer universe.

The pair sits on a clearly comparable long-term path, though it is not a near-twin match.

The strongest overlap appears in investment intensity and revenue growth trajectory.

Similarity drivers
investment intensityrevenue 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
WWD
Woodward, Inc.
57
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: Russell 1000
vs
XYL
Xylem Inc.
46
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: Russell 1000

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: WWD vs XYL Profitability 57 26 Stability 56 48 Valuation 50 71 Growth 71 37 WWD XYL
Gap Ranking
#1 Growth +34
#2 Profitability +31
#3 Valuation +21
#4 Stability +8
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for WWD and XYL Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer WWDXYL Relative valuation Structural strength

Woodward, Inc. still looks stronger overall, though current pricing looks more supportive for Xylem Inc..

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

Entry today — historical context

Where WWD and XYL each sit in their own 5-year price and valuation history.

BASED ON 5-YEAR HISTORY WWD Elevated · above norm 0th 50th 100th 57 pct gap XYL Neutral · below norm 0th 50th 100th 95th 38th
Today XYL sits in the lower-middle of its own 5-year history (38th percentile), while WWD sits higher in its own history (95th). Within each stock's own 5-year context, XYL is at a historically more favourable entry position than WWD. 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, Woodward, Inc. ranks near the top of the group; Xylem Inc. sits in the weaker half.
Profitability
Woodward, Inc. sits in the stronger part of the group on profitability, while Xylem Inc. is closer to mid-pack.
Growth — Dominant Gap
WWD
71
XYL
37
Gap+34in favour of WWD

Revenue growth reinforces the category-level growth lead.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

Absolute pricing still looks more supportive for Xylem, with a forward P/E that is 14.8 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 WWD vs XYL comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

Explore full breakdown →
Other comparisons with conflicting dimension signals

Explore how WWD and XYL 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.