DHR vs WAT

Danaher Corporation and Waters Corporation, both Healthcare

Danaher Corporation is the larger company at $125B against $35B. On trailing earnings DHR is the cheaper of the two at a P/E of 38.3 against 103.3, a gap that is only a bargain if the two are growing at similar rates. Over the past year WAT returned +49% against +11% for DHR. Ryufin's sector-relative Smart Score puts DHR ahead, 6/10 against 3/10.

Danaher Corporation and Waters Corporationcompared on valuation, return and Ryufin’s Smart Score
FigureDHRWAT
Last close$215$414
Market cap$125B$35B
Trailing P/Elower is cheaper for the same earnings, not automatically better38.3103.3
1-year return+11%+49%
5-year return-16%+6.3%
Ryufin Smart Scoresector-relative, 1–106/103/10

Figures from SEC filings and end-of-day closes. Highlighting marks the higher or lower number, which is not the same as the better investment, a low P/E can be a warning and a high one can be deserved.

Danaher Corporation

Revenue of $6.3B in Q2 2026, net income $870M. Its largest reported line is Diagnostics, 46% of the disclosed total.

Waters Corporation

Revenue of $1.6B in Q2 2026, net income null. Its largest reported line is Consumables, 43% of the disclosed total.

Open these two in the interactive comparison to add more names, change the period or read the correlation.