Comprehensive Stock Comparison
Compare Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, I (BWSN) vs Sony Group Corporation (SONY) Stock
Analyze side-by-side fundamentals, valuation, growth, and profitability to decide which stock is the better buy.
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Quick Verdict
| Category | Winner | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Growth | SONY | -0.5% revenue growth vs BWSN's -1.4% |
| Quality / Margins | SONY | 9.2% net margin vs BWSN's -20.1% |
| Stability / Safety | BWSN | Beta 0.25 vs SONY's 0.85 |
| Dividends | BWSN | 0.8% yield, 1-year raise streak, vs SONY's 0.5% |
| Momentum (1Y) | BWSN | +16.6% vs SONY's -7.5% |
| Efficiency (ROA) | SONY | 3.2% ROA vs BWSN's -16.5%, ROIC 10.7% vs 8.8% |
Who Each Stock Is For
Income & stability
Growth exposure
Long-term compounding (10Y)
Sleep-well-at-night portfolio
Defensive / Recession hedge
Business Model
What each company does and how it makes money
Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises is a provider of fossil and renewable power generation equipment and environmental solutions. It makes money through three main segments: B&W Renewable (waste-to-energy systems), B&W Environmental (emissions control equipment), and B&W Thermal (steam generation and aftermarket services). The company's competitive advantage lies in its century-plus engineering expertise and established relationships with power utilities and industrial clients.
Sony Group Corporation is a diversified global entertainment and technology conglomerate spanning electronics, gaming, music, and film. It generates revenue primarily through PlayStation gaming hardware and services (~30%), electronics like cameras and TVs (~25%), music publishing and streaming (~20%), and film production and distribution (~15%). Its competitive moat lies in its integrated ecosystem of hardware, software, and content—particularly the dominant PlayStation platform and its extensive entertainment IP library.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
How each company's revenue is distributed across its business units
Financial Metrics Comparison
Side-by-side fundamentals across 2 stocks. BestLagging
Financial Scorecard
SONY leads in 4 of 6 categories (Financial Metrics, Valuation Metrics). BWSN leads in 1 (Risk & Volatility). 1 tied.
Financial Metrics (TTM)
SONY is the larger business by revenue, generating $12.77T annually — 23624.0x BWSN's $541M. SONY is the more profitable business, keeping 9.2% of every revenue dollar as net income compared to BWSN's -20.1%. On growth, SONY holds the edge at +7.0% YoY revenue growth, suggesting stronger near-term business momentum.
| Metric | BWSNBabcock & Wilcox … | SONYSony Group Corpor… |
|---|---|---|
| RevenueTrailing 12 months | $541M | $12.77T |
| EBITDAEarnings before interest/tax | $12M | $2.60T |
| Net IncomeAfter-tax profit | -$108M | $1.17T |
| Free Cash FlowCash after capex | -$102M | $1.70T |
| Gross MarginGross profit ÷ Revenue | +26.8% | +29.2% |
| Operating MarginEBIT ÷ Revenue | +0.2% | +11.3% |
| Net MarginNet income ÷ Revenue | -20.1% | +9.2% |
| FCF MarginFCF ÷ Revenue | -18.9% | +13.3% |
| Rev. Growth (YoY)Latest quarter vs prior year | -29.0% | +7.0% |
| EPS Growth (YoY)Latest quarter vs prior year | +4.0% | +7.8% |
Valuation Metrics
On an enterprise value basis, SONY's 12.7x EV/EBITDA is more attractive than BWSN's 69.6x.
| Metric | BWSNBabcock & Wilcox … | SONYSony Group Corpor… |
|---|---|---|
| Market CapShares × price | $2.4B | $137.5B |
| Enterprise ValueMkt cap + debt − cash | $2.9B | $145.3B |
| Trailing P/EPrice ÷ TTM EPS | -30.71x | 19.16x |
| Forward P/EPrice ÷ next-FY EPS est. | — | 0.12x |
| PEG RatioP/E ÷ EPS growth rate | — | 1.25x |
| EV / EBITDAEnterprise value multiple | 69.63x | 12.66x |
| Price / SalesMarket cap ÷ Revenue | 3.34x | 1.66x |
| Price / BookPrice ÷ Book value/share | — | 2.57x |
| Price / FCFMarket cap ÷ FCF | — | 12.82x |
Profitability & Efficiency
On the Piotroski fundamental quality scale (0–9), SONY scores 8/9 vs BWSN's 3/9, reflecting strong financial health.
| Metric | BWSNBabcock & Wilcox … | SONYSony Group Corpor… |
|---|---|---|
| ROE (TTM)Return on equity | — | +14.6% |
| ROA (TTM)Return on assets | -16.5% | +3.2% |
| ROICReturn on invested capital | +8.8% | +10.7% |
| ROCEReturn on capital employed | +6.6% | +5.8% |
| Piotroski ScoreFundamental quality 0–9 | 3 | 8 |
| Debt / EquityFinancial leverage | — | 0.49x |
| Net DebtTotal debt minus cash | $515M | $1.22T |
| Cash & Equiv.Liquid assets | $23M | $2.98T |
| Total DebtShort + long-term debt | $538M | $4.20T |
| Interest CoverageEBIT ÷ Interest expense | -0.79x | 22.32x |
Total Returns (with DRIP)
A $10,000 investment in BWSN five years ago would be worth $13,644 today (with dividends reinvested), compared to $10,919 for SONY. Over the past 12 months, BWSN leads with a +16.6% total return vs SONY's -7.5%. The 3-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) favors SONY at 11.9% vs BWSN's 7.5% — a key indicator of consistent wealth creation.
| Metric | BWSNBabcock & Wilcox … | SONYSony Group Corpor… |
|---|---|---|
| YTD ReturnYear-to-date | — | -10.9% |
| 1-Year ReturnPast 12 months | +16.6% | -7.5% |
| 3-Year ReturnCumulative with dividends | +24.3% | +39.9% |
| 5-Year ReturnCumulative with dividends | +36.4% | +9.2% |
| 10-Year ReturnCumulative with dividends | +37.3% | +466.3% |
| CAGR (3Y)Annualised 3-year return | +7.5% | +11.9% |
Risk & Volatility
BWSN is the less volatile stock with a 0.25 beta — it tends to amplify market swings less than SONY's 0.85 beta. A beta below 1.0 means the stock typically moves less than the S&P 500. BWSN currently trades 99.1% from its 52-week high vs SONY's 76.0% drawdown — a narrower gap to the peak suggests stronger recent price momentum.
| Metric | BWSNBabcock & Wilcox … | SONYSony Group Corpor… |
|---|---|---|
| Beta (5Y)Sensitivity to S&P 500 | 0.25x | 0.85x |
| 52-Week HighHighest price in past year | $25.40 | $30.34 |
| 52-Week LowLowest price in past year | $7.09 | $20.42 |
| % of 52W HighCurrent price vs 52-week peak | +99.1% | +76.0% |
| RSI (14)Momentum oscillator 0–100 | 67.9 | 48.4 |
| Avg Volume (50D)Average daily shares traded | 2K | 5.3M |
Analyst Outlook
For income investors, BWSN offers the higher dividend yield at 0.80% vs SONY's 0.53%.
| Metric | BWSNBabcock & Wilcox … | SONYSony Group Corpor… |
|---|---|---|
| Analyst RatingConsensus buy/hold/sell | — | Buy |
| Price TargetConsensus 12-month target | — | $30.00 |
| # AnalystsCovering analysts | — | 16 |
| Dividend YieldAnnual dividend ÷ price | +0.8% | +0.5% |
| Dividend StreakConsecutive years of raises | 1 | 5 |
| Dividend / ShareAnnual DPS | $0.20 | $18.97 |
| Buyback YieldShare repurchases ÷ mkt cap | +0.0% | +1.3% |
Historical Charts
Charts are rendered on first load. Hover for details.
Chart 1Total Return — 5 Years (Rebased to 100)
| Stock | Feb 21 | Dec 25 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Babcock & Wilcox En… (BWSN) | 100 | 99.29 | -0.7% |
| Sony Group Corporat… (SONY) | 100 | 133.12 | +33.1% |
Babcock & Wilcox En… (BWSN) returned +36% over 5 years vs Sony Group Corporat… (SONY)'s +9%. A $10,000 investment in BWSN 5 years ago would be worth $13,644 today (including dividends reinvested).
Chart 2Revenue Growth — 10 Years
| Stock | 2016 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Babcock & Wilcox En… (BWSN) | $1.6B | $717M | -54.6% |
| Sony Group Corporat… (SONY) | $8.1T | $13.0T | +59.9% |
Sony Group Corporation's revenue grew from $8.1T (2016) to $13.0T (2025) — a 5.4% CAGR.
Chart 3Net Margin Trend — 10 Years
| Stock | 2016 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Babcock & Wilcox En… (BWSN) | -7.3% | -8.4% | -14.0% |
| Sony Group Corporat… (SONY) | 1.8% | 8.8% | +383.2% |
Sony Group Corporation's net margin went from 2% (2016) to 9% (2025).
Chart 4P/E Ratio History — 9 Years
| Stock | 2017 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sony Group Corporat… (SONY) | 0.8 | 0.1 | -87.5% |
Sony Group Corporation has traded in a 0x–1x P/E range over 9 years; current trailing P/E is ~19x.
Chart 5EPS Growth — 10 Years
| Stock | 2016 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Babcock & Wilcox En… (BWSN) | -11.5 | -0.82 | +92.9% |
| Sony Group Corporat… (SONY) | 23.5 | 187.92 | +699.7% |
Sony Group Corporation's EPS grew from $23.50 (2016) to $187.92 (2025) — a 26% CAGR.
Chart 6Free Cash Flow — 5 Years
Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, I generated $-130M FCF in 2024 (-10% vs 2021). Sony Group Corporation generated $1.7T FCF in 2025 (+153% vs 2021).
BWSN vs SONY: Frequently Asked Questions
7 questions · data-driven answers · updated daily
01Is BWSN or SONY a better buy right now?
Sony Group Corporation (SONY) offers the better valuation at 19.2x trailing P/E (0.1x forward), making it the more compelling value choice. Analysts rate Sony Group Corporation (SONY) a "Buy" — based on 16 analyst ratings — the highest consensus in this comparison. The "better buy" depends entirely on your goals: growth investors should weight revenue trajectory, value investors should weight P/E and PEG, and income investors should weight dividend yield and streak.
02Which is the better long-term investment — BWSN or SONY?
Over the past 5 years, Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, I (BWSN) delivered a total return of +36.4%, compared to +9.2% for Sony Group Corporation (SONY). A $10,000 investment in BWSN five years ago would be worth approximately $14K today (assuming dividends reinvested). Over 10 years, the gap is even starker: SONY returned +466.3% versus BWSN's +37.3%. Past returns do not guarantee future results, and the stock with the higher historical return may already have its best growth priced in.
03Which is safer — BWSN or SONY?
By beta (market sensitivity over 5 years), Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, I (BWSN) is the lower-risk stock at 0.25β versus Sony Group Corporation's 0.85β — meaning SONY is approximately 247% more volatile than BWSN relative to the S&P 500.
04Which has better profit margins — BWSN or SONY?
Sony Group Corporation (SONY) is the more profitable company, earning 8.8% net margin versus -8.4% for Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, I — meaning it keeps 8.8% of every revenue dollar as bottom-line profit. Operating margin tells a similar story: SONY leads at 10.9% versus 3.5% for BWSN. At the gross margin level — before operating expenses — SONY leads at 28.4%, reflecting greater pricing power or product mix advantage. Stronger margins indicate durable pricing power, lower cost of revenue, or higher mix of software/services. They are one of the clearest signs of business quality.
05Which pays a better dividend — BWSN or SONY?
All stocks in this comparison pay dividends. Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, I (BWSN) offers the highest yield at 0.8%, versus 0.5% for Sony Group Corporation (SONY).
06Is BWSN or SONY better for a retirement portfolio?
For long-horizon retirement investors, Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, I (BWSN) is the stronger choice — it scores higher on the combination of lower volatility, dividend reliability, and long-term compounding (low volatility (β 0.25), 0.8% yield). Both have compounded well over 10 years (BWSN: +37.3%, SONY: +466.3%), confirming both are viable long-term holds — but the lower-volatility option typically results in less emotional selling during corrections. Retirement portfolios generally favour predictability over maximum returns. Consult a financial advisor before making allocation decisions.
07What are the main differences between BWSN and SONY?
Both stocks operate in the Technology sector, making this a peer-level intra-sector comparison — the same macro tailwinds and headwinds will affect both. These fundamental differences mean investors should not choose between them on a single metric — the "better stock" depends entirely on which of these characteristics aligns with your investment strategy.
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