Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. VMI scored 60.2, PAM scored 58.2 — VMI leads.
Compare another set
VMI
Valmont Industries, Inc.
Conglomerates · Quality-Growth
60.2
$467.81 · $9.0B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
2.0
VMI leads
PAM
Pampa Energía S.A.
Conglomerates · Quality-Growth
58.2
$80.34 · $4.3B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
Fastest growthPAM+6.5%
Strongest balance sheetVMI0.51
Highest qualityVMI79 / 100
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
VMI
stronger →← stronger
PAM
79
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
49
57
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
70
49
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
58
PAM is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
VMI
PAM
$322mC
FCF
-$455mF
+3.8%C+
Rev
+6.5%C+
0.51B+
D/E
0.65B
18.3xA-
P/E
—
0.96B+
PEG
0.69A-
—
P/S
1.8xB+
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
VMI
PAM
140% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
—
~27%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
—
-58%
1-yr DCF upside
—
-58%
5-yr DCF upside
—
-58%
10-yr DCF upside
—
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
VMI
Why this score
Buying back stock
Raising its dividend
PAM
No notable signals flagged.
The companies
VMIValmont Industries, Inc.
Conglomerates · $467.81 · beta 1.35
Why now
Conglomerates · market cap $9.0b. Down 20% from 52-week high of $585.71 — deep drawdown territory. PEG 0.96 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 4 sell-side analysts publish a mean 1-yr target of $624.50 (implying +33% upside).
Moat
ROE 29% — 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.
PAMPampa Energía S.A.
Conglomerates · $80.34 · beta -0.24
Why now
Conglomerates · market cap $4.3b. 15% off the 52-week high of $94.50. PEG 0.69 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 11 sell-side analysts publish a mean 1-yr target of $121.09 (implying +51% upside).
Moat
Net margin 24% sits well above the S&P median (~11%) — suggests structural pricing advantage or cost discipline competitors can't quickly close. ROE 15% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
Free cash flow is negative (-$455m) — capital raises or debt issuance likely required; dilution / leverage risk.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
The model favors VMI with a 61.7 score over PAM's 57.8, primarily due to VMI's superior Quality pillar score of 79 compared to PAM's 55. However, a contrarian might prefer PAM for its significantly better PEG ratio of 0.68 (A-), indicating more attractive growth-adjusted value than VMI's 0.96 (B+). A key caution for PAM is its negative free cash flow of -$12m (F grade).
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 VMI and PAM diverge
On the headline score the gap is 2.0 points in favor of VMI. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
QualityVMI 78.9 · PAM 48.9VMI +30.0
GrowthVMI 56.8 · PAM 69.8PAM +13.0
ValueVMI 48.6 · PAM 57.8PAM +9.2
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 VMI or PAM the better stock?
VMI scores higher: VMI 60.2, PAM 58.2 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 VMI and PAM differ most?
The widest gap is quality, where VMI leads by 30 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 VMI and PAM 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.