Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. EXPO scored 77.1, EME scored 72.5 — EXPO leads.
Compare another set
EXPO
Exponent, Inc.
Engineering & Construction · Quality-Growth
77.1
$69.81 · $3.3B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
4.6
EXPO leads
EME
EMCOR Group, Inc.
Engineering & Construction · Quality-Growth
72.5
$789.45 · $34.8B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestEME24.6x
Fastest growthEME+16.6%
Strongest balance sheetEME0.13
Highest qualityEXPO92 / 100
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
EXPO
stronger →← stronger
EME
92
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
84
80
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
88
62
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
52
EXPO is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
EXPO
EME
$109mC
FCF
$1.2bC+
+12.8%B+
Rev
+16.6%B+
0.28A-
D/E
0.13A-
31.3xC+
P/E
24.6xB
2.03C
PEG
0.32A
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
EXPO
EME
29% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
75% above
~15%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~24%/yr
-31%
1-yr DCF upside
-50%
-22%
5-yr DCF upside
-43%
-7%
10-yr DCF upside
-31%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
EXPO
Why this score
Buying back stock
Durable high returns
EME
Why this score
Durable high returns
The companies
EXPOExponent, Inc.
Engineering & Construction · $69.81 · beta 0.70
Why now
Engineering & Construction · market cap $3.3b. 15% off the 52-week high of $81.95. Revenue growing +13%, comfortably above the S&P median. 3 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $84.00 (implying +20% upside).
Moat
Net margin 18% beats the market median by a meaningful margin — the company is keeping more of every revenue dollar than the average S&P constituent. ROE 39% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 97% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Trailing P/E 31x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates.
EMEEMCOR Group, Inc.
Engineering & Construction · $789.45 · beta 1.12
Why now
Engineering & Construction · market cap $34.8b. 17% off the 52-week high of $951.96. Revenue growing +17%, comfortably above the S&P median. PEG 0.32 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 7 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $1,033 (implying +31% upside).
Moat
ROE 40% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which.
Risk
Value re-rating depends on a catalyst. Without one — analyst day, divestiture, margin recovery, capital return — the stock can stay cheap on these multiples for years.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
The model slightly favors EME (76.4) over EXPO (75.8), primarily driven by EME's significantly better PEG grade of A (0.40) compared to EXPO's C (2.03). However, a contrarian investor might prefer EXPO as it trades at a much lower premium to its DCF fair value (20% versus EME's 96%), implying less future growth (13%) is priced in.
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where EXPO and EME diverge
On the headline score the gap is 4.6 points in favor of EXPO. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
ValueEXPO 62.2 · EME 51.5EXPO +10.7
QualityEXPO 92.2 · EME 83.8EXPO +8.4
GrowthEXPO 80.0 · EME 88.1EME +8.1
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is EXPO or EME the better stock?
EXPO scores higher: EXPO 77.1, EME 72.5 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do EXPO and EME differ most?
The widest gap is value, where EXPO leads by 11 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. Neither name sweeps: they trade the lead across the three pillars, so the comparison is a trade-off rather than one being better on every measure.
How are EXPO and EME scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.