Reviewing Kone Oyj (OTCMKTS:KNYJY) and Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN)

Nordson (NASDAQ:NDSN) and Kone Oyj (OTCMKTS:KNYJY) are both large-cap industrials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, risk, valuation and profitability.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Nordson and Kone Oyj”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Nordson	$2.79 billion	6.57	$484.47 million	$9.89	33.29
Kone Oyj	$12.72 billion	2.28	$1.11 billion	$1.11	28.80

Kone Oyj has higher revenue and earnings than Nordson. Kone Oyj is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Nordson, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Nordson pays an annual dividend of $3.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. Kone Oyj pays an annual dividend of $0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Nordson pays out 38.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Kone Oyj pays out 39.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Nordson has raised its dividend for 62 consecutive years.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

72.1% of Nordson shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of Nordson shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Nordson and Kone Oyj’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Nordson	18.63%	20.49%	10.88%
Kone Oyj	8.61%	41.07%	11.11%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Nordson and Kone Oyj, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Nordson	0	3	5	0	2.62
Kone Oyj	3	3	1	1	2.00

Nordson presently has a consensus target price of $326.57, indicating a potential downside of 0.81%. Given Nordson’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Nordson is more favorable than Kone Oyj.

Volatility and Risk

Nordson has a beta of 0.99, indicating that its stock price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kone Oyj has a beta of 0.61, indicating that its stock price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Nordson beats Kone Oyj on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Nordson

Nordson Corporation develops and manufactures precision technology used to apply, manage, and inspect materials in industrial and medical applications. Its products help customers dispense adhesives, sealants, coatings, polymers, and other fluids with accuracy and consistency. The company’s offerings include hot-melt adhesive dispensing systems, precision fluid dispensing equipment, material coating and surface-treatment systems, and inspection and testing technologies. Nordson also supplies components and equipment for medical devices and related applications.

About Kone Oyj

KONE Oyj is a Finnish company that develops, manufactures, installs and services elevators, escalators and automatic building doors. Its offerings also include solutions for managing the movement of people within buildings. The company serves customers around the world, providing equipment for new buildings as well as maintenance, repair and modernization services for existing installations. KONE was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Espoo, Finland. Philippe Delorme became KONE’s President and Chief Executive Officer in 2024.