Paul Mueller Valuation Multiples

Caterpillar is the world’s leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives. Its reporting segments are construction, resource, energy, and transportation. Market share approaches 20% across many products. Caterpillar operates a captive finance subsidiary to facilitate sales. The firm has a global reach that is approximately evenly balanced between the US and the rest of the world. Construction skews more domestic, while the other divisions are more geographically diversified. An independent network of over 150 dealers operates approximately 2,800 facilities, giving Caterpillar reach into about 190 countries for sales and support services.

Applied Materials is the largest semiconductor wafer fabrication equipment manufacturer in the world. It has a broad portfolio spanning nearly every corner of the WFE ecosystem. Applied Materials holds leading market share in deposition, which entails the layering of new materials on semiconductor wafers. It is more exposed to general-purpose logic chips made at integrated device manufacturers and foundries. It counts the largest chipmakers in the world as customers, including TSMC, Intel, and Samsung.

Siemens is a multi-industry company focused on the areas of automation, electrification, mobility, and healthcare. Its top three geographic regions—the United States, Germany, and China—contribute over half of group revenue. Siemens has a 71% investment in separately listed Siemens Healthineers. Recent portfolio activity included the listing of Siemens Energy, spinning out its power and gas and Siemens Gamesa business divisions in 2020.

ABB supplies electrical equipment and automation products. Founded in the late 19th century, the company was created out of the merger of two old industrial companies: ASEA and BBC. Its products include electrical equipment, industrial robots, and equipment used for industrial automation, sold via approximately 19 business divisions. ABB is the number-one or -two supplier in two-thirds of its product segments.

Zhongji Innolight Co Ltd is a China-based company engaged in the research & development, production, and sales of high-end optical communication transceiver modules, 5G wireless networks, telecom transmission, and fixed network access. The company pays attention to technology research and development and promotes products with high speed, Miniaturization, low power consumption, and low cost that are developed to provide cloud data centers of high-speed Optical transceivers for telecom equipment manufacturers 5G Fronthaul, midhaul, and backhaul optical modules are used to transmit optical on metro, backbone, and core networks modules as well as applications for fixed networks.

Deere is the world’s leading manufacturer of agricultural equipment and a major producer of construction machinery. The company is divided into four reporting segments: production & precision agriculture, or PPA, small agriculture & turf, or SAT, construction & forestry, or CF, and financial services, or FS, its captive finance subsidiary. The core PPA business is the largest contributor to sales and profits by far. Geographically, Deere sales are 60% US/Canada, 17% Europe, 14% Latin America, and 9% rest of the world. Deere goes to market through a robust dealer network that includes over 2,000 dealer locations in North America with reach into over 100 countries. John Deere Financial provides retail financing for machinery to its customers and wholesale financing for dealers.

Founded in 1911 by Joseph Eaton, the eponymous company began by selling truck axles in New Jersey. Eaton has since become an industrial powerhouse largely through acquisitions in various end markets. Eaton's portfolio can broadly be divided into two parts: its electrical and industrial businesses. Its electrical portfolio (representing around 70% of company revenue) sells components within data centers, utilities, and commercial and residential buildings, while its industrial business (30% of revenue) sells components within commercial and passenger vehicles and aircraft. Eaton receives favorable tax treatment as a domiciliary of Ireland, but it generates over half of its revenue within the US.

Vertiv has roots tracing back to 1946 when its founder, Ralph Liebert, developed an air-cooling system for mainframe data rooms. As computers started making their way into commercial applications in 1965, Liebert developed one of the first computer room air conditioning, or CRAC, units, enabling the precise control of temperature and humidity. The firm has slowly expanded its data center portfolio through internal product development and the acquisition of thermal and power management products like condensers, busways, and switches. Vertiv has global operations today; its products can be found in data centers in most regions throughout the world.

Hitachi Ltd is engaged in diverse businesses spanning industries, energy, IT, and real estate. The company operates through four business segments. The Connective Industries segment covers elevators, escalators, home appliances, air conditioning, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, medical analyzers, industrial and distribution solutions, water and environmental solutions, and industrial equipment. The Digital Systems & Services segment offers system integration, consulting, cloud services, IT products, software, and ATMs. The Green Energy & Mobility segment focuses on power grids, renewable energy, nuclear power, and railway systems. The Others include real estate management, sales, and leasing. It generates the majority of its revenue from the Green Energy & Mobility segment.

Safran is a key player in the global commercial and military aerospace propulsion and equipment sectors. The group has three reportable segments: aerospace propulsion (commercial and military aircraft engines and spare parts); aircraft equipment, defense, and aerosystems (diversified business supplying components ranging from landing gear to avionics); and aircraft interiors (seats, cabins, and in-flight entertainment systems). Safran is a partner to the CFM joint venture with GE Aviation, which produces narrow-body engines.

Honeywell traces its roots to 1885 with Albert Butz’s firm, Butz Thermo-Electric Regulator, which produced a predecessor to the modern thermostat. Other inventions by Honeywell include biodegradable detergent and autopilot. Today, Honeywell is a global multi-industry behemoth with one of the largest installed bases of equipment. It operates through four business segments: aerospace technologies, industrial automation, energy and sustainability solutions, and building automation. Recently, Honeywell has made several portfolio changes to focus on fewer end markets and align with a set of secular growth trends. The firm is working diligently to expand its installed base, deriving around one third of its revenue from recurring aftermarket services.

Mitsubishi Corp. is Japan’s largest general trading house, or sogo shosha, a type of conglomerate unique to Japan. Its core role is that of a trading intermediary in a variety of industrial sectors, including resources businesses like energy and metals as well as non-resources businesses, both industrial ones like automotive and non-industrial ones like food, healthcare, and retail. In addition to acting as a trading intermediary (including midstream processing functions to convert inputs into final products), Mitsubishi also participates in upstream production businesses and downstream distribution businesses.

Founded in 1902, Air Liquide is one of the leading industrial gas companies in the world, serving over 3.8 million customers in 78 countries. The company generated approximately EUR 27.9 billion of revenue in 2025, serving a wide range of industries, including chemicals, energy, healthcare, food and beverage, and electronics. Air Liquide employs approximately 65,000 people.

Parker Hannifin started out in 1917 as Parker Appliance, selling pneumatic brakes. Through the acquisition of branded components, the firm has expanded into aerospace engines, agricultural and construction machinery, freight and passenger vehicles, and industrial automation equipment. Within these larger systems, Parker sells a wide array of small, critical pieces such as hydraulic, electromechanical, climate control, and filtration components. Many of its products are designed to work together, resulting in a high rate of cross-selling.

Howmet Aerospace Inc offers engineered solutions for the aerospace and transportation industries. The company's products and solutions include investment castings for jet engines and industrial gas turbines; seamless rolled rings for jet engines; fastening systems for aerospace, industrial and commercial transportation applications; forged jet engine components (e.g., jet engine disks); machined and forged aircraft parts; and forged aluminum commercial vehicle wheels, all of which are sold directly to customers or through distributors. It has four reportable segments: Engine Products, which derives key revenue, Fastening Systems, Engineered Structures, and Forged Wheels. Geographically, the company derives maximum revenue from the USA, followed by France, Japan, Germany, and other markets.

Cummins is a leading manufacturer of diesel and other engines used in heavy- and medium-duty commercial trucks, off-highway equipment, and locomotives, in addition to prime power and standby generators. The company also sells powertrain components, which include filtration products, transmissions, turbochargers, aftertreatment systems, and fuel systems. Sales are approximately 60% US and Canada and 40% rest of the world. Much of Cummins’ foreign sales (China, India, and so forth) are through joint ventures. The company operates 650 distributors and over 19,000 dealer locations across 190 countries. Cummins’ business model is unique as it competes with many of its heavy-duty truck manufacturer customers, which also make their own engines.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd is engaged in the manufacturing and sale of ships, industrial machinery, and aircraft. The segments of the company are Energy; Plants and Infrastructure Systems; Logistics, Thermal and Drive Systems; and Aircraft, Defense, and Space. The company earns maximum revenue from the energy segment, which handles clean gas, steam power systems, nuclear power systems, compressors, and marine machinery. The Plants and Infrastructure Systems segment of the company deals with commercial ships, engineering, machine tools, and machinery systems; Logistics, Thermal, and Drive Systems provide material handling systems, engines, HVAC systems, and automotive air-conditioners; and the Aircraft, Defense, and Space cover commercial aircraft, defense aircraft, and others.

Atlas Copco is a 140-year-old Swedish company that pioneered air compression technology and remains a leading air compressor manufacturer. Atlas Copco is also a leading manufacturer of vacuum pump equipment, industrial power tools, and portable power and air compression equipment. The company's operations match the geographic breadth of its customers, with a presence in 180 countries. Atlas Copco's revenue is derived from three sources: initial equipment sales, spare parts, and maintenance.

Based in Toronto, Barrick is one of the world's largest gold miners. In 2025, the firm sold about 3.3 million attributable ounces of gold and about 220,000 metric tons of copper. At end-2025, Barrick had about two decades of gold reserves along with significant copper reserves. After buying Randgold in 2019 and combining its Nevada mines in a joint venture with competitor Newmont later that year, it operates mines in the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The company also has growing copper exposure, driven by the expansion of its Lumwana mine in Zambia and the development of its Reko Diq copper and gold project in Pakistan. It intends to undertake an IPO of its joint venture stakes in Nevada Gold Mines and Pueblo Viejo along with its Fourmile deposit later in 2026.

Founded in 1890 as the first manufacturer of electric fans in North America, Emerson Electric has become a leading industrial automation player through the acquisition of established brands. Emerson organizes its business into seven segments that sell a wide range of automation software, power tools, and automation hardware such as valves, gauges, and switches. In recent years, Emerson divested its climate technology and consumer businesses to become more of a pure-play industrial automation company. The automation of a factory is an enticing long-term proposition for manufacturers, helping reduce accident rates and raise uptime and productivity.

3M, a multinational conglomerate founded in 1902, sells tens of thousands of products ranging from sponges to respirators. The firm is well known for its extensive research and development capabilities, and it is a pioneer in inventing new use cases for its proprietary technologies. 3M is organized across three business segments: safety and industrial (representing around 44% of revenue), transportation and electronics (36%), and consumer (20%). The firm recently spun off its healthcare business, now known as Solventum. Nearly half of 3M’s revenue comes from outside the Americas.

Coherent Corp engaged in materials, networking, and lasers, is a vertically integrated manufacturing company that develops, manufactures, and markets engineered materials, optoelectronic components and devices, and lasers for use in the industrial, communications, electronics and instrumentation markets. The firm operates in three segments Networking, Materials, and Lasers Segment. It generates maximum revenue from Networking segment. The company geographically operates in North America. Europe, China, Japan and Rest of the world.

Founded in 1912, Illinois Tool Works has become a diversified industrial manufacturer through acquisitions and innovations that follow customer needs. ITW operates through seven business segments, with no segment representing more than one-fifth of revenue. ITW’s automotive OEM segment sells vehicle components; its food equipment segment sells commercial kitchen appliances; its test and measurement and electronics segment sells inspection and analysis equipment; its welding segment sells welding equipment and consumables; its polymers and fluids segment sells industrial and consumer adhesives, solvents, and coatings; its construction products segment sells building fasteners and tools; and its specialty products segment sells medical, packaging, HVAC, and airport ground equipment.

LG Energy Solution is the third-largest battery maker for electric vehicles with about 11% global share in 2024, according to SNE Research. The EV battery segment is the largest revenue contributor, which accounted for more than 60% of total revenue in 2024. LGES also manufactures batteries for mobility, mobile phones, laptops, electrical devices, and energy storage systems. The company was spun off from LG Chem’s battery division in December 2020 and listed on the Korea Exchange in January 2022. It has global manufacturing facilities in Korea, China, Poland, and the United States. Key customers include General Motors, Tesla, Volkswagen, Hyundai, and Stellantis.

TransDigm manufactures and services a broad set of specialized parts for commercial and military aircraft. The firm organizes itself in three segments: power and control, airframes, and a small non-aviation segment, which serves mostly off-road vehicles and mining equipment. It operates as an acquisitive holding company that focuses on buying up smaller firms that make proprietary aerospace products with substantial aftermarket demand. TransDigm regularly employs financial leverage to amplify its operating results.

Sumitomo Corp. is a general trading house, or sogo shosha, a type of conglomerate unique to Japan. Its core role is that of a trading intermediary in a variety of industrial sectors, including resources businesses such as energy and metals as well as nonresources businesses, both industrial ones like machinery and non-industrial ones like food, media, and retail. In addition to acting as a trading intermediary (including midstream processing functions to convert inputs into final products), Sumitomo also participates in upstream production businesses and downstream distribution businesses.

Elite Material Co Ltd is engaged in the manufacturing and selling of printed circuit boards, copper-clad laminates, electronic-industrial specialty chemicals, raw materials, work-in-progress, and finished goods of electronic components. The Group has three reportable segments: The domestic segment produces and sells different types of printed circuit board products, electronic-industrial specialty chemicals, and electronic components, the Foreign segment produces and sells prepreg for printed circuit board and copper-clad laminate, and the Other segment includes investment and product exchange business. Geographically, it operates in Taiwan, China, and Other countries.

Larsen & Toubro Ltd is a technology, engineering, manufacturing, and financial services conglomerate operating globally. It enters into contracts to construct various facilities, develop solutions for offshore and onshore hydrocarbon projects, serve power plants, build ships, and perform other engineering projects. Its integrated capabilities help customers throughout the entire value chain, from design to delivering a project. The company's operating segments are: Infrastructure projects, Energy projects, Hi-Tech Manufacturing, IT & Technology services, Financial services, Development projects, and other segments. A majority of its revenue is generated from the Infrastructure projects segment. Geographically, the group generates maximum revenue from its operations in India.

ASM International is a Dutch company that supplies deposition equipment for chip fabrication. It is the leader in atomic layer deposition, or ALD, a precise deposition technique that is required in the most advanced semiconductors. ASM’s main clients are logic foundries TSMC, Samsung, and Intel, as well as memory foundries SK Hynix and Micron Technology. Foundries and wafer fab equipment providers like ASM work closely, which gives the firm insight into the customer’s innovation and product road maps. Once a machine is established in a fab, it can generate service revenue for decades.

With roots tracing back to the early 1900s, Rockwell Automation is the successor to Rockwell International, which spun off its avionics segment in 2001. It is a pure-play industrial automation company that operates through three segments. Its largest segment by revenue, intelligent devices, sells factory floor-level devices such as motors, drives, sensors, relays, and actuators. Its software and control segment sells visualization, simulation, and human-machine interface software and control products such as programmable controllers, computers, and operator terminals. Its smallest segment, lifecycle services, offers digital consulting, engineered-to-order services, and other outsourced services such as remote monitoring, cybersecurity, and asset and plant maintenance and optimization.

Sandvik is a manufacturer of specialized tools and mining equipment used predominantly by global mining, engineering, and automotive customers. The group is composed of three segments: mining and rock solutions, rock processing, and machining. Sandvik was founded in 1862 and listed on the Nordic Exchange in Stockholm in 1901.

Established in Osaka, Japan, in 1924, Daikin Industries is one of the world’s largest residential and commercial heating, ventilation, and air conditioning product and service companies. North America, Japan, China, and Europe are Daikin’s four biggest markets, with North America accounting for over 30% of the company’s revenue over the years. The air conditioning segment represents about 90% of Daikin’s revenue and operating income, while chemicals and others account for the remaining 10%.

Toyota Industries Corp is engaged in the manufacture and sale of automobiles, industrial vehicles, and textile machinery. The group operates through three reportable segments: Automobiles, Industrial Vehicles, and Textile Machinery. The Automobiles segment includes vehicles, engines, castings, car air conditioner compressors, electronic devices, and batteries. The Industrial Vehicles segment covers forklift trucks, warehouse equipment, automated warehouses, and logistics solutions. The Textile Machinery segment manufactures looms, spinning machines, and related equipment. It generates the majority of its revenue from the Industrial vehicles segment.

SMC Corp manufactures automatic control and filtration equipment. Its main products include directional control devices, drive systems, pneumatic auxiliary equipment, temperature regulation units, and sensors. These are utilized across a wide range of industries, including steel, chemicals, food processing, physics, medical devices, and other related fields. The company's products are widely applied across sectors such as steel, chemicals, food processing, physics, medical devices, and other related industries.

Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co Ltd is an HVAC&R manufacturer of controls and components. It is engaged in the research and development, manufacture, and distribution of refrigeration and air-conditioning control components, which include four-way reversing valves, solenoid valves, and electronic expansion valves. The products offered by the company are standard controls and line components, customized controls and line components, electronic controls, and micro-channel heat exchangers. The products have applications in air conditioning, commercial refrigeration, heat pumps, and home appliances. The organization supplies its products in China and internationally.

Founded in 1955 by George Ohrstrom, Dover has become an industrial behemoth through the acquisition of dozens of esteemed brands. The company is organized into five segments through which it designs and manufactures highly engineered components, such as vehicle repair, factory automation, welding, aerospace, fuel dispensing, printing, liquid handling, refrigeration, and can-making equipment. It has operations around the globe but generates over half of its revenue in the United States.

Ingersoll Rand was formed through the merger of Gardner Denver and Ingersoll Rand's industrial segment. The firm’s portfolio consists of two business lines: industrial technologies and services, and precision and science technologies. Ingersoll Rand serves a variety of end markets, including industrial, medical, and energy. Its broad portfolio of products includes compression, blower and vacuum, and fluid management. Ingersoll Rand generated roughly $7.7 billion in revenue in 2025.

Curtiss-Wright Corporation delivers engineered products and services to commercial, defence, power generation, and other industrial markets. It offers industrial vehicle components, control systems, weapons handling systems, pumps, valves, and other solutions. The company has three reportable segments based on the markets serviced: Naval & Power, which provides coolant pumps, power-dense compact motors, generators, secondary propulsion systems, pumps, pump seals, valves, control rod drive mechanisms, and fastening systems that also generate maximum revenue for the company; its other segments are Aerospace & Industrial and Defense Electronics. Geographically, the company generates its key revenue from the United States of America, followed by the United Kingdom and other countries.

Bridgestone Corp is engaged in developing, manufacturing, and marketing tires and diversified products. The company manufactures tires and tubes for passenger cars, trucks and buses, construction and mining vehicles, industrial machinery, agricultural machinery, aircraft, motorcycles and scooters, and others. Its tire operations include retread business, automotive maintenance and repairs, retail business, and raw material supplies, as well as tire development, manufacturing, and marketing. The company also provides diversified products that include industrial products, chemical products, automotive components, construction materials, electronic equipment, bicycles, and sporting goods.

Founded in 1888 by Harvey Hubbell, the eponymous company was the conduit through which the pull-chain lamp socket was originally sold. Hubbell has since grown into an electricity transmission and distribution behemoth, housing more than 75 brands that sell components found on power lines, in electrical substations, and in commercial and industrial buildings. The company's primary operations are in the United States, where around 90% of revenue is derived.

Alfa Laval is a leading manufacturer of highly engineered equipment, primarily in the areas of separation, heat transfer, and fluid handling used by a diverse range of customers spanning the food, water, energy, and marine industries. These products play a key role in a number of industrial processes, and Alfa Laval enjoys a leading position in all three areas. Alfa Laval’s history stretches back 140 years to when its first separator was developed. The company is listed on the Stockholm stock exchange.

Wartsila is a global manufacturer of critical equipment and services for the marine and energy markets with operations in over 70 countries. Approximately one-half of the group’s sales are derived from the sale of services and spare parts through its network of 258 sales and service network locations. Wartsila is listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki exchange in Finland. Approximately one in three oceangoing vessels has a Wartsila solution on board, translating into an installed base of over 50,000 vessels and 10,000 customers.

VAT Group AG manufactures and sells valves that are used in machines. The company has two segments. The Valves segment which is a developer, manufacturer and supplier of vacuum valves for the semiconductor, displays, photovoltaics and vacuum coating industries as well as for the industrial and research sector. The second segment, Global Service, provides local support to customers and offers spare parts, repairs and upgrades.. The company derives maximum revenue from the Valves segment. The company derives maximum revenue from China.

Entegris is a leading supplier of purification solutions and advanced materials. The vast majority of sales are to the semiconductor industry. The majority of revenue comes from semiconductor fabricators, but the company sells to all areas of the semiconductor manufacturing supply chain including equipment and engineering, chemicals and materials, and distributors. Entegris specializes in materials science and materials purity, both of which are crucial in the semiconductor manufacturing process.

ATI Inc supplies specialty metals to various end markets, including aerospace and defense, oil and gas, automotive, and electrical energy, among many others. The company's operating segment includes High-Performance Materials and Components and Advanced Alloys and Solutions. The majority of revenue is from the High-Performance Materials segment. The High-Performance Materials segment is focused on a wide range of high-performance specialty materials, parts, and components for several the majority of end markets, including the aerospace & defense, medical, and energy markets. Geographically, it operates in the United States, China, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, and Others, the majority is from the United States.

Woodward Inc is an independent designer, manufacturer, and service provider of control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets. It designs, produces, and services reliable, efficient, low-emission, and high-performance energy control products for diverse applications in challenging environments. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servo controls, motors, and sensors for aircraft. The Industrial segment offers actuators, valves, pumps, fuel injection systems, solenoids, ignition systems, speed controls, electronics and software, and sensors.

EVE Energy Co Ltd is a China-based enterprise mainly engaged in the research, manufacturing, and sale of consumer batteries, power batteries, and energy storage batteries. Its consumer battery portfolio includes lithium primary cells, compact lithium-ion batteries, and cylindrical batteries, applied in both consumer and industrial sectors such as smart metering, smart home devices, automotive electronics, and more. The company’s power batteries consist of products and systems for new energy passenger vehicles, serving applications in passenger cars, commercial vehicles, engineering machinery, and related fields. Its energy storage batteries are utilized in power, industrial, and commercial energy storage solutions, among other applications.

Carpenter Technology Corp supplies specialty metals to a variety of end markets, including aerospace and defense, industrial machinery and consumer durables, medical, and energy, among others. The company's reportable segments include; Specialty Alloys Operations and Performance Engineered Products. It generates maximum revenue from the Specialty Alloys Operations segment. The SAO segment is comprised of the company's alloy and stainless steel manufacturing operations. This includes operations performed at mills predominantly in Reading and Latrobe, Pennsylvania, and surrounding areas as well as South Carolina and Alabama. Geographically, the company derives its maximum revenue from the United States and the rest from Europe, Asia Pacific, Mexico, Canada, and other regions.