COMPARE · Data as of August 21, 2026
MWA vs WTS
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. MWA scored 72.1, WTS scored 54.9 — MWA leads.
Compare another set
MWA
MUELLER WATER PRODUCTS
72.1
$24.94 · $3.9B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
17.2
MWA leads
WTS
Watts Water Technologies, Inc.
54.9
$375.57 · $12.5B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
- CheapestMWA17.6x
- Fastest growthWTS+17.1%
- Strongest balance sheetWTS0.10
- Highest qualityWTS81 / 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)
MWA
stronger →← stronger
WTS
75
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
81
65
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
87
77
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
23
WTS is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
MWA
WTS
$180mC
FCF
$349mC
+5.9%C+
Rev
+17.1%B+
0.40B+
D/E
0.10A
17.6xA-
P/E
32.8xB
1.02B+
PEG
3.83D
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
MWA
WTS
52% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
133% above
~13%/yr
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~29%/yr
-33%
1-yr DCF upside
-60%
-34%
5-yr DCF upside
-57%
-35%
10-yr DCF upside
-52%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
MWA
No notable signals flagged.
WTS
Why this score
- Raising its dividend
- Durable high returns
The companies
MWAMUELLER WATER PRODUCTS
Why now
Specialty Industrial Machinery · market cap $3.9b. 20% off the 52-week high of $31.00. 6 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $31.00 (implying +24% upside).
Moat
Net margin 15% beats the market median by a meaningful margin — the company is keeping more of every revenue dollar than the average S&P constituent. ROE 20% sits above Buffett's preferred 15% threshold — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
Mature compounder — the risk is paying up for quality at a moment when growth is decelerating. Watch for sequential revenue + margin trends; the inflection from "compounder" to "ex-compounder" is hard to spot until the multiple already started compressing.
WTSWatts Water Technologies, Inc.
Why now
Specialty Industrial Machinery · market cap $12.5b. 5% off the 52-week high of $394.54. Revenue growing +17%, comfortably above the S&P median. 9 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $393.00 (implying +5% upside).
Moat
Net margin 14% beats the market median by a meaningful margin — the company is keeping more of every revenue dollar than the average S&P constituent. ROE 18% sits above Buffett's preferred 15% threshold — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
Trailing P/E 33x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
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 MWA and WTS diverge
On the headline score the gap is 17.2 points in favor of MWA. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
- ValueMWA 76.9 · WTS 23.5MWA +53.4
- GrowthMWA 65.0 · WTS 87.5WTS +22.5
- QualityMWA 75.0 · WTS 80.7WTS +5.7
Pillars run 0–100 against sector peers, so a 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.