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Side-by-side financial comparison of Howmet Aerospace (HWM) and PLEXUS CORP (PLXS). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

Howmet Aerospace is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($2.3B vs $1.2B, roughly 2.0× PLEXUS CORP). Howmet Aerospace runs the higher net margin — 25.1% vs 4.3%, a 20.8% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Howmet Aerospace posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (19.0% vs 18.7%). Over the past eight quarters, Howmet Aerospace's revenue compounded faster (10.9% CAGR vs 7.2%).

Howmet Aerospace Inc. is an American aerospace company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company manufactures components for jet engines, fasteners, titanium structures for aerospace applications, and forged aluminum wheels for heavy trucks.

Plex Systems, Inc. is an American software company based in Troy, Michigan. The company develops and markets the Plex Manufacturing Cloud, a software as a service (SaaS) or cloud computing ERP for manufacturing.

HWM vs PLXS — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
HWM
HWM
2.0× larger
HWM
$2.3B
$1.2B
PLXS
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
HWM
HWM
+0.3% gap
HWM
19.0%
18.7%
PLXS
Higher net margin
HWM
HWM
20.8% more per $
HWM
25.1%
4.3%
PLXS
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
HWM
HWM
Annualised
HWM
10.9%
7.2%
PLXS

Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q2 FY2026

Metric
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Revenue
$2.3B
$1.2B
Net Profit
$580.0M
$49.8M
Gross Margin
10.2%
Operating Margin
32.6%
5.3%
Net Margin
25.1%
4.3%
Revenue YoY
19.0%
18.7%
Net Profit YoY
27.5%
EPS (diluted)
$1.82

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
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$2.3B
$1.1B
Q4 25
$2.2B
Q3 25
$2.1B
Q2 25
$2.1B
Q1 25
$1.9B
Q4 24
$1.9B
Q3 24
$1.8B
Q2 24
$1.9B
Net Profit
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$580.0M
$41.2M
Q4 25
$372.0M
Q3 25
$385.0M
Q2 25
$407.0M
Q1 25
$344.0M
Q4 24
$314.0M
Q3 24
$332.0M
Q2 24
$266.0M
Gross Margin
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
9.9%
Q4 25
Q3 25
Q2 25
Q1 25
Q4 24
Q3 24
Q2 24
Operating Margin
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
32.6%
5.1%
Q4 25
22.6%
Q3 25
25.9%
Q2 25
25.4%
Q1 25
25.4%
Q4 24
23.5%
Q3 24
22.9%
Q2 24
21.2%
Net Margin
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
25.1%
3.8%
Q4 25
17.2%
Q3 25
18.4%
Q2 25
19.8%
Q1 25
17.7%
Q4 24
16.6%
Q3 24
18.1%
Q2 24
14.1%
EPS (diluted)
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$1.51
Q4 25
$0.92
Q3 25
$0.95
Q2 25
$1.00
Q1 25
$0.84
Q4 24
$0.76
Q3 24
$0.81
Q2 24
$0.65

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

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

Metric
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$2.4M
$303.1M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$450.0K
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$5.5M
$1.5B
Total Assets
$13.1M
$3.4B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.08×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$2.4M
$248.8M
Q4 25
$742.0M
Q3 25
$659.0M
Q2 25
$545.0M
Q1 25
$536.0M
Q4 24
$564.0M
Q3 24
$475.0M
Q2 24
$752.0M
Total Debt
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$450.0K
Q4 25
$3.0B
Q3 25
$3.2B
Q2 25
$3.3B
Q1 25
$3.3B
Q4 24
$3.3B
Q3 24
$3.4B
Q2 24
$3.7B
Stockholders' Equity
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$5.5M
$1.5B
Q4 25
$5.4B
Q3 25
$5.1B
Q2 25
$5.0B
Q1 25
$4.8B
Q4 24
$4.6B
Q3 24
$4.5B
Q2 24
$4.3B
Total Assets
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$13.1M
$3.2B
Q4 25
$11.2B
Q3 25
$11.2B
Q2 25
$11.0B
Q1 25
$10.8B
Q4 24
$10.5B
Q3 24
$10.6B
Q2 24
$10.7B
Debt / Equity
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
0.08×
Q4 25
0.57×
Q3 25
0.62×
Q2 25
0.65×
Q1 25
0.69×
Q4 24
0.73×
Q3 24
0.75×
Q2 24
0.86×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

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

Metric
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$359.0M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
15.5%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
9.3%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$1.7B

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
Q4 25
$654.0M
Q3 25
$531.0M
Q2 25
$446.0M
Q1 25
$253.0M
Q4 24
$480.0M
Q3 24
$244.0M
Q2 24
$397.0M
Free Cash Flow
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
$359.0M
Q4 25
$530.0M
Q3 25
$423.0M
Q2 25
$344.0M
Q1 25
$134.0M
Q4 24
$378.0M
Q3 24
$162.0M
Q2 24
$342.0M
FCF Margin
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
15.5%
Q4 25
24.4%
Q3 25
20.2%
Q2 25
16.8%
Q1 25
6.9%
Q4 24
20.0%
Q3 24
8.8%
Q2 24
18.2%
Capex Intensity
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
9.3%
Q4 25
5.7%
Q3 25
5.2%
Q2 25
5.0%
Q1 25
6.1%
Q4 24
5.4%
Q3 24
4.5%
Q2 24
2.9%
Cash Conversion
HWM
HWM
PLXS
PLXS
Q1 26
Q4 25
1.76×
Q3 25
1.38×
Q2 25
1.10×
Q1 25
0.74×
Q4 24
1.53×
Q3 24
0.73×
Q2 24
1.49×

Financial Flow Comparison

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

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

HWM
HWM

Segment breakdown not available.

PLXS
PLXS

Asia-Pacific$652.0M56%
Americas$397.0M34%
Europe, Middle East and Africa$116.0M10%

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