Sifting through countless of stocks in the Machinery industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Mueller Industries, Inc. or ESAB Corporation because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation

Mueller Industries, Inc. manufactures and sells copper, brass, and aluminum products in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Asia and the Middle East, and Mexico. It operates through three segments: Piping Systems, Industrial Metals, and Climate. The Piping Systems segment offers copper tubes, fittings, line sets, and pipe nipples; resells steel pipe, brass and plastic plumbing valves, malleable iron fittings, faucets, and plumbing specialties. This segment sells its products to wholesalers in the plumbing and refrigeration markets, distributors to the manufactured housing and recreational vehicle industries, building material retailers, and air-conditioning original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The Industrial Metals segment offers brass, bronze, and copper alloy rods; cold-form aluminum and copper products; high-volume machining of aluminum, steel, brass, and cast-iron impacts and castings for automotive applications; brass and aluminum forgings; brass, aluminum, and stainless steel valves; fluid control solutions; and gas train assembles; specialty copper, copper alloy, and aluminum tube to OEMs in the industrial, construction, plumbing, refrigeration, utility, telecommunication, and electrical distribution markets, as well as heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) markets. The Climate segment provides valves, protection devices, and brass fittings; and coaxial heat exchangers and twisted tubes to wholesalers and OEMs in the HVAC and refrigeration markets. This segment also manufactures and distributes high-pressure components and accessories, as well as insulated HVAC flexible duct systems. Mueller Industries, Inc. was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Collierville, Tennessee.

ESAB Corporation engages in the formulation, development, manufacture, and supply of consumable products and equipment for use in cutting, joining, automated welding, and gas control equipment. Its comprehensive range of welding consumables includes electrodes, cored and solid wires, and fluxes using a range of specialty and other materials; and cutting consumables comprising electrodes, nozzles, shields, and tips. The company’s equipment ranges from portable welding machines to large customized automated cutting and welding systems. It also offers a range of software and digital solutions to help its customers increase their productivity, remotely monitor their welding operations, and digitize their documentation. In addition, it produces and supplies wire, strip, and welding powder. The company sells its products under the ESAB brand to various end markets, such as general industry, infrastructure, renewable energy, medical and life sciences, transportation, construction, and energy. It offers its products through independent distributors and direct salespeople. It operates in North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, India, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. ESAB Corporation was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in North Bethesda, Maryland.

Latest Machinery and Mueller Industries, Inc., ESAB Corporation Stock News

As of January 16, 2026, Mueller Industries, Inc. had a $14.7 billion market capitalization, compared to the Machinery median of $3.5 million. Mueller Industries, Inc.’s stock is up 15.7% in 2026, up 7.5% in the previous five trading days and up 63.5% in the past year.

Currently, Mueller Industries, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 19.9. Mueller Industries, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $4.1 billion with a 18.1% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 8.0%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $7.100 per share for the current fiscal year. Mueller Industries, Inc. currently has a 0.8% dividend yield.

As of January 16, 2026, ESAB Corporation had a $7.4 billion market cap, putting it in the 74th percentile of all stocks. ESAB Corporation’s stock is up 8.8% in 2026, up 1.1% in the previous five trading days and up 0.39% in the past year.

Currently, ESAB Corporation’s price-earnings ratio is 27.2. ESAB Corporation’s trailing 12-month revenue is $2.8 billion with a 8.7% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 8.1%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $5.287 per share for the current fiscal year. ESAB Corporation currently has a 0.3% dividend yield.

How We Compare Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

Learn more about A+ Investor here!

Sign Up to Receive a Free Special Report Showing How A+ Grades Can Help You Make Smarter Investment Decisions

Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Mueller Industries, Inc.	MLI	A
ESAB Corporation	ESAB	C

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Mueller Industries, Inc. has a Quality Score of 91, which is Very Strong. ESAB Corporation has a Quality Score of 60, which is Average.

The Quality Grade Winner: Mueller Industries, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Mueller Industries, Inc. has a better overall quality grade than ESAB Corporation. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Mueller Industries, Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
Mueller Industries, Inc.	MLI	A
ESAB Corporation	ESAB	D

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

Mueller Industries, Inc. has a Momentum Score of 84, which is Very Strong. ESAB Corporation has a Momentum Score of 36, which is Weak.

The Momentum Grade Winner: Mueller Industries, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Momentum Grade breakdown above, Mueller Industries, Inc. is considered to have stronger momentum compared to ESAB Corporation. For those specifically looking for companies that have stronger momentum compared to other companies in the same industry, Mueller Industries, Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Mueller Industries, Inc.	MLI	C
ESAB Corporation	ESAB	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Mueller Industries, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 49, which is Neutral. ESAB Corporation has a Earnings Estimate Score of 43, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Mueller Industries, Inc. or ESAB Corporation has an Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade that could be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Mueller Industries, Inc. or ESAB Corporation is the better investment when it comes to estimate revisions.

Other Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation Grades

In addition to Momentum, Quality and Estimate Revisions, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Growth.

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Mueller Industries, Inc. or ESAB Corporation Stock?

Overall, Mueller Industries, Inc. stock has a Momentum Score of 84, Estimate Revisions Score of 49 and Quality Score of 91.

ESAB Corporation stock has a Momentum Score of 36, Estimate Revisions Score of 43 and Quality Score of 60.

Comparing Mueller Industries, Inc. and ESAB Corporation’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.