Core & Main vs Watsco
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Core & Main and Watsco side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Core & Main is the larger business, with $7.6B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $7.2B for Watsco.
- Core & Main grew revenue faster (2.8%, against −5.0%).
- Watsco kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (10.0% operating margin, against 9.4%).
- Core & Main turned more of its sales into free cash flow (7.9% FCF margin, against 7.4%).
- Watsco earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (20.1%, against 13.7%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Watsco’s earnings: a P/E of 26.3x against 17.4x for Core & Main.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Core & Main
CNM
6/11
Revenue growth5-year growthFCF marginReturn on equityPiotroski F-scoreShare count change
Watsco
WSO
5/11
Gross marginOperating marginNet marginReturn on capitalNet debt / EBITDA
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | CNM FY25 | WSO FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $8.2B | $11.7B |
| Revenue | $7.6B | $7.2B |
| Free cash flow | $604M | $535M |
| Net income | $441M | $497M |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 2.8% | −5.0% |
| 5-year growth | 16.0% | 7.5% |
| Share count change | −1.8% | 1.0% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 26.9% | 28.1% |
| Operating margin | 9.4% | 10.0% |
| Net margin | 5.8% | 6.9% |
| FCF margin | 7.9% | 7.4% |
| Return on capital | 13.7% | 20.1% |
| Return on equity | 23.9% | 18.3% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $1.9B | −$255M |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 2.1x | −0.3x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $155M | $474M |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 17.4x | 26.3x |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 | 6 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.