Compare StocksJNJ vs XYL

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) vs Xylem Inc. (XYL)

JNJ
Johnson & Johnson
$227.19
VS
XYL
Xylem Inc.
$115.37

Rewards

JNJ
  • Johnson & Johnson has maintained ROIC above 10% for 4 consecutive years, suggesting solid business economics.
  • Gross margin of 68.0% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
  • Johnson & Johnson scores 90/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with revenue predictability as the strongest competitive dimension.
XYL
  • Free cash flow has grown at a 32.9% CAGR over the past 4 years, demonstrating strong earnings power growth.
  • Each dollar of retained earnings has created $4.72 of earning power — management is an exceptional capital allocator.
  • Trailing P/E of 28.8x is 29% below the historical average of 40.8x — potentially undervalued relative to its own history.

Risks

JNJ
  • Trailing P/E of 26.3x is 32% above the historical average of 20.0x — the stock trades at a premium to its own history.
  • PEG ratio of 2.95 indicates the stock is expensive relative to its expected growth — the market may be pricing in more growth than analysts project.
  • 7 insider sales totaling $58.4M with no purchases in the past 3 months — insiders are reducing their exposure.
XYL
  • Share count has increased by 35% over the past 4 years, diluting existing shareholders.
  • Despite buyback spending, shares outstanding increased in 3 out of 4 years — stock-based compensation is offsetting repurchases.

Key Valuation Metrics

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JNJ
XYL
Valuation
$19.31B
Free Cash Flow
$959.12M
3.53%
FCF Yield
3.50%
26.33
Trailing P/E
28.77
17.87
Forward P/E
18.96
Quality & Moat
15.32%
ROIC
6.97%
33.02%
ROE
8.52%
68.04%
Gross Margin
38.61%
2.95
PEG Ratio
1.98
Balance Sheet Safety
0.68
Debt / Equity
0.18
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
0.96
Net Debt / EBITDA
0.66
2.36%
Dividend Yield
1.49%
JNJ: 7Ties: 2XYL: 3
JNJXYL

Historical Fundamentals

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JNJ

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

XYL

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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JNJ
$0.91
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Mediocre Allocator
Σ Retained
$40.05B
Δ Market Cap
+$36.63B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
XYL
$9.35
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Exceptional Value Creator
Σ Retained
$1.42B
Δ Market Cap
+$13.25B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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JNJ
11.4% Margin of Safety
Price is 11.4% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $227.19
Fair Value: $256.33
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
XYL
22.7% Overvalued
Price is 22.7% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $115.37
Fair Value: $94.01
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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JNJ

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $227?

+8.8%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +13.2%

The market implies +8.8% Owner Earnings growth, below historical trends — potential opportunity.

Standard FCF implies a more demanding +13.2%, reflecting heavy growth investment expected to generate future returns.

XYL

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $115?

+13.2%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +13.2%

The market implies +13.2% Owner Earnings growth, below historical trends — potential opportunity.

Standard FCF implies a more demanding +13.2%, reflecting heavy growth investment expected to generate future returns.

Economic Moat Score

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JNJ
90/100
Wide Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat with strength across all dimensions. Revenue Predictability is the standout factor.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 5 years of fundamental data.
XYL
54/100
Narrow Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Narrow moat with reinvestment efficiency as the key competitive advantage. Improving roic consistency would strengthen the moat.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

Forensic Accounting

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JNJ
-2.31
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
XYL
-2.49
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Ownership Breakdown

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JNJ
Insiders 0.1%Institutions 76.2%Retail & Other 23.7%
No. of Institutional Holders5,579
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
XYL
Insiders 0.3%Institutions 99.1%Retail & Other 0.6%
No. of Institutional Holders1,638
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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JNJ
0
Buys (3M)
1
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $257,688
MORIKIS JOHN G
Director
$257,688
@ $206.15 · 2025-11-26
WEINBERGER MARK A
Director
$147,220
@ $147.22 · 2024-12-12
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
XYL
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
TRETIKOV LILA
Director
$528.00
@ $132.00 · 2024-10-22
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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JNJ
7
Sells (3M)
12
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $101.23M
DECKER ROBERT J
Officer
$1.01M
@ $247.87 · 2026-02-27
SCHMID TIMOTHY
Officer
$324,763
@ $245.66 · 2026-02-20
SCHMID TIMOTHY
Officer
$5.53M
@ $244.33 · 2026-02-18
SWANSON JAMES D
Chief Technology Officer
$15.11M
@ $243.39 · 2026-02-17
BROADHURST VANESSA
Officer
$1.51M
@ $243.39 · 2026-02-17
REED JOHN C
Officer
$13.11M
@ $243.00 · 2026-02-17
WOLK JOSEPH J
Chief Financial Officer
$21.77M
@ $242.80 · 2026-02-17
REED JOHN C
Officer
$4.19M
@ $192.71 · 2025-10-17
TAUBERT JENNIFER L
Officer
$10.04M
@ $177.81 · 2025-09-04
DUATO JOAQUIN BOIX
Chief Executive Officer
$22.55M
@ $179.21 · 2025-08-22
WOLK JOSEPH J
Chief Financial Officer
$2.98M
@ $176.91 · 2025-08-15
REED JOHN C
Officer
$3.13M
@ $163.55 · 2025-07-17
DECKER ROBERT J
Officer
$1.16M
@ $165.88 · 2025-02-25
SCHMID TIMOTHY
Officer
$62,928
@ $156.15 · 2025-02-18
WOLK JOSEPH J
Chief Financial Officer
$2.00M
@ $153.89 · 2025-02-07
DECKER ROBERT J
Officer
$930,113
@ $165.06 · 2024-08-30
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
XYL
0
Sells (3M)
4
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $1.34M
HARKER VICTORIA D
Director
$251,838
@ $148.14 · 2025-11-04
MCSHANE GERI-MICHELLE
Officer
$139,962
@ $139.96 · 2025-09-05
GLATCH LISA
Director
$689,231
@ $140.66 · 2025-08-18
HARKER VICTORIA D
Director
$258,542
@ $143.63 · 2025-08-04
MCSHANE GERI-MICHELLE
Officer
$527,978
@ $128.18 · 2025-03-07
CAPERS DOROTHY TREFON
General Counsel
$1.53M
@ $127.26 · 2025-03-04
TRETIKOV LILA
Director
$480.00
@ $120.00 · 2024-11-01
HARKER VICTORIA D
Director
$352,314
@ $127.65 · 2024-09-09
MCSHANE GERI-MICHELLE
Officer
$315,799
@ $138.63 · 2024-06-10
AULICK RODNEY O
Officer
$3.03M
@ $139.01 · 2024-06-05
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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JNJ
FearGreed
😐Neutral(57/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
XYL
FearGreed
😨Fear(34/100)

"Market is pessimistic — investigate whether fears are temporary or structural"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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JNJ
Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (57)
XYL
Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Fear (34)
View JNJ Full AnalysisView XYL Full Analysis
JNJ vs XYL: Which Is the Better Buy? | SafetyMargin.io