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Side-by-side financial comparison of KADANT INC (KAI) and Wingstop Inc. (WING). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

KADANT INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($271.6M vs $183.7M, roughly 1.5× Wingstop Inc.). Wingstop Inc. runs the higher net margin — 16.3% vs 10.2%, a 6.1% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Wingstop Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (7.4% vs -0.0%). Over the past eight quarters, Wingstop Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (8.6% CAGR vs 6.7%).

Kadant Inc. is a company that was established in 1991, as a partly privately owned subsidiary of Thermo Electron, and partly publicly traded company, and was fully spun out and renamed Kadant in 2001. The company supports papermaking, paper recycling, wood processing, material handling, and other processing industries. Kadant is a multi-national corporation with operations in Asia, Europe, North America, and South America.

Wingstop Inc. is an American international fast food chain that primarily sells buffalo wings. Wingstop locations are decorated with a 1930s and 1940s pre-jet aviation theme.

KAI vs WING — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
KAI
KAI
1.5× larger
KAI
$271.6M
$183.7M
WING
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
WING
WING
+7.4% gap
WING
7.4%
-0.0%
KAI
Higher net margin
WING
WING
6.1% more per $
WING
16.3%
10.2%
KAI
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
WING
WING
Annualised
WING
8.6%
6.7%
KAI

Income Statement — Q3 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Revenue
$271.6M
$183.7M
Net Profit
$27.7M
$29.9M
Gross Margin
45.2%
86.5%
Operating Margin
15.7%
27.4%
Net Margin
10.2%
16.3%
Revenue YoY
-0.0%
7.4%
Net Profit YoY
-12.2%
EPS (diluted)
$2.35
$1.08

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
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
$183.7M
Q4 25
$175.7M
Q3 25
$271.6M
$175.7M
Q2 25
$255.3M
$174.3M
Q1 25
$239.2M
$171.1M
Q4 24
$258.0M
$161.8M
Q3 24
$271.6M
$162.5M
Q2 24
$274.8M
$155.7M
Net Profit
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
$29.9M
Q4 25
$26.8M
Q3 25
$27.7M
$28.5M
Q2 25
$26.2M
$26.8M
Q1 25
$24.1M
$92.3M
Q4 24
$24.0M
$26.8M
Q3 24
$31.6M
$25.7M
Q2 24
$31.3M
$27.5M
Gross Margin
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
86.5%
Q4 25
Q3 25
45.2%
Q2 25
45.9%
Q1 25
46.1%
Q4 24
43.4%
85.6%
Q3 24
44.7%
85.0%
Q2 24
44.4%
85.4%
Operating Margin
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
27.4%
Q4 25
26.7%
Q3 25
15.7%
27.9%
Q2 25
15.4%
25.9%
Q1 25
14.9%
22.4%
Q4 24
14.3%
25.9%
Q3 24
18.0%
24.5%
Q2 24
17.6%
26.5%
Net Margin
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
16.3%
Q4 25
15.2%
Q3 25
10.2%
16.2%
Q2 25
10.2%
15.4%
Q1 25
10.1%
53.9%
Q4 24
9.3%
16.5%
Q3 24
11.6%
15.8%
Q2 24
11.4%
17.7%
EPS (diluted)
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
$1.08
Q4 25
$0.99
Q3 25
$2.35
$1.02
Q2 25
$2.22
$0.96
Q1 25
$2.04
$3.24
Q4 24
$2.04
$0.91
Q3 24
$2.68
$0.88
Q2 24
$2.66
$0.93

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

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

Metric
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$124.5M
$128.8M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$254.6M
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$949.8M
Total Assets
$1.5B
$648.9M
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.27×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
$128.8M
Q4 25
$196.6M
Q3 25
$124.5M
$237.6M
Q2 25
$95.3M
$227.9M
Q1 25
$91.7M
$251.4M
Q4 24
$94.7M
$315.9M
Q3 24
$88.4M
$84.0M
Q2 24
$73.8M
$96.7M
Total Debt
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
$1.2B
Q3 25
$254.6M
Q2 25
$245.7M
Q1 25
$273.5M
Q4 24
$285.2M
$1.2B
Q3 24
$323.2M
Q2 24
$342.0M
Stockholders' Equity
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
$-736.8M
Q3 25
$949.8M
$-702.6M
Q2 25
$926.0M
$-686.0M
Q1 25
$876.0M
$-715.0M
Q4 24
$847.1M
$-675.6M
Q3 24
$851.7M
$-447.5M
Q2 24
$807.7M
$-437.5M
Total Assets
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
$648.9M
Q4 25
$693.4M
Q3 25
$1.5B
$721.0M
Q2 25
$1.5B
$708.3M
Q1 25
$1.4B
$696.8M
Q4 24
$1.4B
$716.2M
Q3 24
$1.5B
$484.8M
Q2 24
$1.5B
$451.8M
Debt / Equity
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
Q3 25
0.27×
Q2 25
0.27×
Q1 25
0.31×
Q4 24
0.34×
Q3 24
0.38×
Q2 24
0.42×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

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

Metric
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$47.3M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$44.1M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
16.2%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
1.2%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
1.70×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$145.9M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
$57.3M
Q3 25
$47.3M
$63.9M
Q2 25
$40.5M
$6.6M
Q1 25
$22.8M
$25.3M
Q4 24
$51.9M
$7.7M
Q3 24
$52.5M
$69.0M
Q2 24
$28.1M
$36.2M
Free Cash Flow
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
$34.5M
Q3 25
$44.1M
$61.7M
Q2 25
$36.5M
$-7.8M
Q1 25
$19.0M
$17.3M
Q4 24
$46.3M
$-8.6M
Q3 24
$48.3M
$54.9M
Q2 24
$23.1M
$25.9M
FCF Margin
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
19.6%
Q3 25
16.2%
35.1%
Q2 25
14.3%
-4.5%
Q1 25
7.9%
10.1%
Q4 24
17.9%
-5.3%
Q3 24
17.8%
33.8%
Q2 24
8.4%
16.6%
Capex Intensity
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
13.0%
Q3 25
1.2%
1.3%
Q2 25
1.6%
8.2%
Q1 25
1.6%
4.7%
Q4 24
2.2%
10.1%
Q3 24
1.5%
8.7%
Q2 24
1.8%
6.6%
Cash Conversion
KAI
KAI
WING
WING
Q1 26
Q4 25
2.14×
Q3 25
1.70×
2.24×
Q2 25
1.55×
0.25×
Q1 25
0.95×
0.27×
Q4 24
2.16×
0.29×
Q3 24
1.66×
2.68×
Q2 24
0.90×
1.32×

Financial Flow Comparison

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

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

KAI
KAI

Flow Control$94.8M35%
Capital$83.2M31%
Material Handling Systems$70.3M26%
Transferred Over Time$17.1M6%
Other$6.1M2%

WING
WING

Royalty revenue, franchise fees and other$87.5M48%
Advertising fees$63.3M34%
Company-owned restaurant sales$33.0M18%

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