AMCR vs SLGN: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Last updated October 2026

Short answer

AMCR is the larger of the two ($21.35B market cap): the incumbent the market prices for continued execution (10.67x forward earnings, beta 0.58). SLGN is the smaller challenger ($3.99B), cheaper on forward earnings (9.25x): more room to run, but more to prove. The real question is which set of drivers you believe, and whether owning one (or both) leaves you over-concentrated.

AMCR vs SLGN: the tie-breaker metrics

Same yardstick, side by side (as of October 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Metric	AMCR	SLGN	What it tells you
Market cap	$21.35B	$3.99B	Size. The larger name is the incumbent; the smaller has more room to grow and more to prove.
Forward P/E	10.67	9.25	Valuation on next year's expected earnings, the same yardstick for both. Lower is cheaper for that growth; higher means the market is paying up.
Trailing P/E	19.42	14.82	Valuation on the last 12 months. A big drop from trailing to forward means the market expects earnings to jump, so more growth is already in the price.
Beta	0.58	0.67	Volatility vs the market. Above 1 swings harder than the index; below 1 is steadier. Higher beta means bigger drawdowns to hold through.
Price vs 52-week range	68% of range	26% of range	Where today's price sits between the 52-week low and high. Near the high is momentum with less margin of safety; near the low is out of favor or a discount, depending on why.
Price / book	1.81	1.68	How much you pay over book value. Very high can signal an asset-light, high-return business or a rich price.

Reading it: SLGN is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

Before you buy: how AMCR and SLGN affect your concentration

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. AMCR and SLGN share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined AMCR and SLGN exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

What does Amcor plc (AMCR) do?

Amcor plc makes the packaging most shoppers touch every day without noticing: the film around fresh meat and cheese, the pouch holding pet food, blister and sterile packs for medicines, PET bottles for soft drinks, and plastic containers for food service and beauty products. Founded in Australia in 1926 and now headquartered in Zurich, it listed on the NYSE in 2019 after buying Bemis, and in April 2025 it closed an all-stock merger with Berry Global that roughly doubled its rigid plastics business. The combined company employs about 75,000 people and reports in two segments, Global Flexible Packaging Solutions and Global Rigid Packaging Solutions. In January 2026 it completed a one-for-five reverse stock split, so today's ~$46 share price is not comparable to the ~$10 quotes from 2025.

Full AMCR guide

What does Silgan Holdings (SLGN) do?

Silgan Holdings Inc. is a leading maker of sustainable rigid packaging for essential consumer goods, operating in three segments: Dispensing and Specialty Closures (pumps, sprayers, triggers, and caps for fragrance, beauty, healthcare, food, and beverage), Metal Containers (steel and aluminum cans for food and pet food), and Custom Containers (custom-designed plastic containers). Metal Containers has historically been about half of sales while Dispensing and Specialty Closures has grown, boosted by acquisitions, to roughly 45% of revenue, giving Silgan a mix of a stable, high-share North American food-can franchise plus a higher-value dispensing business. Because its customers are consumer-staples companies, demand is relatively steady across economic cycles, and most cost inflation (steel, aluminum, resin) is passed through to customers under contract, though often on a lag.

Full SLGN guide

AMCR vs SLGN: how do they differ?

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

AMCR drivers: Berry Global synergies; Volume recovery in core categories.
SLGN drivers: Dispensing and specialty closures mix shift; Defensive staples demand and cost pass-through.

Which fits which kind of investor

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Leverage is the central risk. For SLGN, the main risk is slow organic growth: Silgan is a mature, capital-intensive packaging supplier, so volume gains are modest and much of the growth story depends on acquisitions and mix shift rather than end-market expansion.

AMCR or SLGN: which should you pick?

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick AMCR if you believe its drivers more; SLGN if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the AMCR and SLGN guides.

AMCR vs SLGN: the full fundamentals

AMCR. At ~$46.17 on October 26, 2026, Amcor trades at ~11.5x fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS of ~$4.02 and ~19x GAAP EPS of ~$2.38, the gap reflecting merger amortization and restructuring charges. Enterprise value is ~$34 billion, or roughly 9x EBITDA. The ~5.6% dividend yield is high for a large-cap industrial. That discount reflects leverage, years of soft volumes and scepticism about synergy delivery. Guidance of ~$1.80 to ~$1.90 for the six months to December and double-digit growth in calendar 2027 would, if met, bring the forward multiple closer to ~10x.

SLGN. Figures are approximate and tied to the asOf date; verify live numbers before acting. At ~$37.85 on October 16, 2026, Silgan trades at about 15x trailing GAAP earnings but only ~9x forward adjusted earnings and ~8.6x EV/EBITDA, cheaper than it was in the summer after a ~17% three-month slide, which leaves it below most slow-growth industrial packaging peers. Leverage and the gap between GAAP and adjusted earnings are part of the discount, so the valuation case leans as much on cash generation, dividend growth, and deleveraging as on earnings expansion. The 13 covering analysts have a mean target of ~$52.

Headline figures (approximate, October 2026): AMCR shows revenue (fy2026, to june) ~$23.5B, adjusted eps (fy2026) ~$4.02, p/e (adjusted / gaap) ~11.5x / ~19x, market cap ~$21.3B; SLGN shows revenue (ttm) ~$6.68 billion (Q2 2026 ~$1.64 billion, up ~6.8% year over year), net income (ttm) ~$270 million (~4% net margin; operating margin ~10.3%), adjusted eps (q2 2026) ~$0.98 (vs ~$0.96 estimate), 2026 / 2027 consensus eps ~$3.82 / ~$4.09 (adjusted).

The bottom line: AMCR vs SLGN

AMCR and SLGN are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined AMCR and SLGN exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.

Wondering how AMCR or SLGN fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.

Investing in Amcor plc with AI

Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how AMCR fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.

Does AMCR fit me?

FAQ

What is the difference between AMCR and SLGN?

Is AMCR or SLGN the better stock?

Neither is universally better. AMCR is the larger incumbent; SLGN is the smaller challenger and looks cheaper on forward earnings. Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Compare what each does, the tie-breaker metrics above, and the risks, then decide which fits your thesis and what you already own.

Which is cheaper, AMCR or SLGN?

On forward P/E (as of October 2026), AMCR trades at 10.67x and SLGN at 9.25x, so SLGN is the cheaper of the two on next year's expected earnings. A lower multiple is not automatically the better buy: a richer valuation can be justified by faster growth, and a lower one can reflect real risk. Weigh the multiple against how fast each business is compounding.

Should you own both AMCR and SLGN?

Because they share themes, owning both concentrates you in that theme. That can be intentional (a focused bet) or accidental (less diversification than it looks). Walnut can show your combined exposure across both, and whether adding either over-concentrates you, before you buy.

What are the risks of AMCR vs SLGN?

AMCR: Leverage is the central risk. With ~$12.9 billion of net debt and leverage near ~3.5x, a stumble in earnings or cash flow would slow deleveraging and could pressure the dividend, which already absorbs roughly half of the ~$2.5 billion free cash flow management is guiding to. Higher interest and tax expense is already a ~$0.10 to ~$0.12 per share headwind in the transition period. Resin and input costs are a second exposure: Middle East disruption in 2026 drove what management called unprecedented inflation, and while Amcor passed through ~$280 million of price in the June quarter, pass-through lags can squeeze margins and tie up working capital, as the ~$500 million build showed. Volumes have been weak for years, especially in healthcare (lower-margin categories), North American beverage, and liquids, and the recent turn is only one quarter old. Integration execution matters too, since the 2027 EPS growth call leans heavily on synergies. Regulatory pressure on single-use plastics, including EU packaging rules and extended producer responsibility fees, could raise costs or shift demand toward paper and reusable formats. Finally, law firms have advertised investigations on behalf of former Berry holders, though no securities class action had been filed as of October 2026. SLGN: The main risk is slow organic growth: Silgan is a mature, capital-intensive packaging supplier, so volume gains are modest and much of the growth story depends on acquisitions and mix shift rather than end-market expansion. Leverage of around ~3.5x EBITDA means interest costs and refinancing matter, and a downturn or an ill-timed deal could strain the balance sheet. Raw-material inflation in steel, aluminum, and resin is largely passed through but on a lag, so margins can compress in a given quarter before pricing catches up. Customer concentration in consumer-staples food and beverage means the loss or in-sourcing of a large account would hurt, and secular shifts away from certain package formats (for example canned food) are a slow structural headwind. Weather and input-cost swings, both flagged in Q1 2026, can add near-term volatility to an otherwise steady business. The market has also been marking down the stock despite steady results: it is down about 17% over three months to October 2026, and trailing earnings were about 14% lower year over year at mid-2026, so the gap between reported progress and share-price performance is itself something to weigh.

Walnut is informational, not investment advice. This page is descriptive and not a recommendation to buy or sell AMCR or SLGN; figures are approximate and dated (as of October 2026). Verify current data before investing.