vs

Side-by-side financial comparison of CENTRAL GARDEN & PET CO (CENT) and MUELLER INDUSTRIES INC (MLI). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

MUELLER INDUSTRIES INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($962.4M vs $617.4M, roughly 1.6× CENTRAL GARDEN & PET CO). MUELLER INDUSTRIES INC runs the higher net margin — 16.0% vs 1.1%, a 14.9% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, MUELLER INDUSTRIES INC posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (4.2% vs -6.0%). MUELLER INDUSTRIES INC produced more free cash flow last quarter ($121.4M vs $-81.0M). Over the past eight quarters, MUELLER INDUSTRIES INC's revenue compounded faster (6.4% CAGR vs -17.2%).

Central Garden & Pet Co is a leading U.S.-headquartered supplier of pet supplies and garden products. Its portfolio includes pet food, treats, grooming tools, lawn care items, gardening accessories and pest control solutions, serving retail partners like mass merchants, independent pet stores and garden centers across North America with multiple well-known consumer brands in its two core segments.

Mueller Industries is an American manufacturing company that specializes in piping, industrial metals and climate machinery. It was founded in 1917 and is included on the Fortune 1000 list in 2022. The head office of the company is located in Memphis, Tennessee. Mueller Industries, Inc. is a multi-billion dollar revenue company that is publicly traded.

CENT vs MLI — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
MLI
MLI
1.6× larger
MLI
$962.4M
$617.4M
CENT
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
MLI
MLI
+10.2% gap
MLI
4.2%
-6.0%
CENT
Higher net margin
MLI
MLI
14.9% more per $
MLI
16.0%
1.1%
CENT
More free cash flow
MLI
MLI
$202.4M more FCF
MLI
$121.4M
$-81.0M
CENT
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
MLI
MLI
Annualised
MLI
6.4%
-17.2%
CENT

Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q4 FY2025

Metric
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Revenue
$617.4M
$962.4M
Net Profit
$6.8M
$153.7M
Gross Margin
30.9%
Operating Margin
2.7%
17.9%
Net Margin
1.1%
16.0%
Revenue YoY
-6.0%
4.2%
Net Profit YoY
-51.2%
11.7%
EPS (diluted)
$0.11
$1.37

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$617.4M
$962.4M
Q3 25
$678.2M
$1.1B
Q2 25
$960.9M
$1.1B
Q1 25
$833.5M
$1.0B
Q4 24
$656.4M
$923.5M
Q3 24
$669.5M
$997.8M
Q2 24
$996.3M
$997.7M
Q1 24
$900.1M
$849.7M
Net Profit
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$6.8M
$153.7M
Q3 25
$-9.8M
$208.1M
Q2 25
$95.0M
$245.9M
Q1 25
$63.6M
$157.4M
Q4 24
$14.0M
$137.7M
Q3 24
$-34.2M
$168.7M
Q2 24
$79.7M
$160.2M
Q1 24
$62.0M
$138.4M
Gross Margin
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
30.9%
Q3 25
29.0%
Q2 25
34.6%
Q1 25
32.8%
Q4 24
29.8%
Q3 24
25.2%
27.6%
Q2 24
31.8%
27.3%
Q1 24
31.0%
28.4%
Operating Margin
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
2.7%
17.9%
Q3 25
-0.9%
25.6%
Q2 25
14.1%
26.7%
Q1 25
11.2%
20.6%
Q4 24
4.3%
18.4%
Q3 24
-4.8%
20.7%
Q2 24
11.6%
21.0%
Q1 24
10.4%
21.6%
Net Margin
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
1.1%
16.0%
Q3 25
-1.4%
19.3%
Q2 25
9.9%
21.6%
Q1 25
7.6%
15.7%
Q4 24
2.1%
14.9%
Q3 24
-5.1%
16.9%
Q2 24
8.0%
16.1%
Q1 24
6.9%
16.3%
EPS (diluted)
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$0.11
$1.37
Q3 25
$-0.16
$1.88
Q2 25
$1.52
$2.22
Q1 25
$0.98
$1.39
Q4 24
$0.21
$1.21
Q3 24
$-0.51
$1.48
Q2 24
$1.19
$1.41
Q1 24
$0.93
$1.21

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$721.1M
$1.4B
Total DebtLower is stronger
$1.2B
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$1.6B
$3.2B
Total Assets
$3.6B
$3.7B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.76×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$721.1M
$1.4B
Q3 25
$882.5M
$1.3B
Q2 25
$713.0M
$1.1B
Q1 25
$516.7M
$873.6M
Q4 24
$618.0M
$1.1B
Q3 24
$753.5M
$969.6M
Q2 24
$570.4M
$825.7M
Q1 24
$301.3M
$1.4B
Total Debt
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$1.2B
Q3 25
$1.2B
Q2 25
$1.2B
Q1 25
$1.2B
Q4 24
$1.2B
Q3 24
$1.2B
Q2 24
$1.2B
Q1 24
$1.2B
Stockholders' Equity
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$1.6B
$3.2B
Q3 25
$1.6B
$3.1B
Q2 25
$1.6B
$2.9B
Q1 25
$1.5B
$2.7B
Q4 24
$1.5B
$2.8B
Q3 24
$1.6B
$2.7B
Q2 24
$1.6B
$2.5B
Q1 24
$1.5B
$2.4B
Total Assets
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$3.6B
$3.7B
Q3 25
$3.6B
$3.7B
Q2 25
$3.7B
$3.5B
Q1 25
$3.6B
$3.2B
Q4 24
$3.5B
$3.3B
Q3 24
$3.6B
$3.2B
Q2 24
$3.6B
$3.1B
Q1 24
$3.5B
$2.9B
Debt / Equity
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
0.76×
Q3 25
0.75×
Q2 25
0.75×
Q1 25
0.77×
Q4 24
0.78×
Q3 24
0.76×
Q2 24
0.75×
Q1 24
0.79×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$-70.2M
$141.2M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$-81.0M
$121.4M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
-13.1%
12.6%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
1.8%
2.1%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
-10.26×
0.92×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$285.0M
$686.6M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$-70.2M
$141.2M
Q3 25
$182.7M
$310.1M
Q2 25
$265.5M
$190.6M
Q1 25
$-46.9M
$113.6M
Q4 24
$-68.8M
$140.1M
Q3 24
$203.1M
$231.4M
Q2 24
$286.1M
$100.8M
Q1 24
$-24.5M
$173.6M
Free Cash Flow
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
$-81.0M
$121.4M
Q3 25
$171.9M
$291.8M
Q2 25
$251.7M
$176.5M
Q1 25
$-57.5M
$97.0M
Q4 24
$-74.9M
$111.2M
Q3 24
$193.0M
$205.7M
Q2 24
$272.5M
$91.6M
Q1 24
$-33.9M
$157.2M
FCF Margin
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
-13.1%
12.6%
Q3 25
25.3%
27.1%
Q2 25
26.2%
15.5%
Q1 25
-6.9%
9.7%
Q4 24
-11.4%
12.0%
Q3 24
28.8%
20.6%
Q2 24
27.3%
9.2%
Q1 24
-3.8%
18.5%
Capex Intensity
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
1.8%
2.1%
Q3 25
1.6%
1.7%
Q2 25
1.4%
1.2%
Q1 25
1.3%
1.7%
Q4 24
0.9%
3.1%
Q3 24
1.5%
2.6%
Q2 24
1.4%
0.9%
Q1 24
1.0%
1.9%
Cash Conversion
CENT
CENT
MLI
MLI
Q4 25
-10.26×
0.92×
Q3 25
1.49×
Q2 25
2.79×
0.78×
Q1 25
-0.74×
0.72×
Q4 24
-4.91×
1.02×
Q3 24
1.37×
Q2 24
3.59×
0.63×
Q1 24
-0.40×
1.25×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

CENT
CENT

Garden Products Segment$201.6M33%
Dogand Cat Products$157.0M25%
Other Pet Products$117.8M19%
Manufactured Product Other$102.5M17%
Wild Bird Products$38.5M6%

MLI
MLI

Tube And Fittings$484.6M50%
Industrial Metals$252.2M26%
Valves And Plumbing Specialties$122.5M13%
Flex Duct And Other HVAC Components$80.8M8%
Other Products$14.9M2%

Related Comparisons