ATMU vs PH: How Atmus Filtration Technologies and Parker Hannifin Compare (2026)

Last updated August 2026

Short answer

PH is the larger of the two ($123.13B market cap): the incumbent the market prices for continued execution (28.63x forward earnings, beta 1.11). ATMU is the smaller challenger ($4.42B), cheaper on forward earnings (16.66x): 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.

ATMU vs PH: the tie-breaker metrics

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 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.

MetricATMUPHWhat it tells you
Market cap$4.42B$123.13BSize. The larger name is the incumbent; the smaller has more room to grow and more to prove.
Forward P/E16.6628.63Valuation 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/E21.2435.97Valuation 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.
Beta1.191.11Volatility 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 range58% of range83% of rangeWhere 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 / book10.968.43How much you pay over book value. Very high can signal an asset-light, high-return business or a rich price.

Reading it: ATMU 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 ATMU and PH 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. ATMU and PH 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 ATMU and PH 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 Atmus Filtration Technologies (ATMU) do?

Atmus Filtration Technologies designs and manufactures filtration products, principally under the Fleetguard and Nelson brands, for commercial trucks, construction and agricultural equipment, power generation and marine engines. The core products are unglamorous and consumable: fuel filters, lube filters, air filters, crankcase ventilation systems, coolant chemicals and exhaust components that wear out on a schedule and get replaced by a fleet mechanic, a dealer or an independent shop. Cummins carried the business for decades before spinning it out through a May 2023 IPO at $19.50 a share, then disposing of its remaining stake in March 2024. What is left is a roughly $1.8 billion revenue company with about 4,500 employees, a global distribution network reaching hundreds of thousands of service points, and specification positions on engine platforms that were locked in years ago.

Full ATMU guide

What does Parker Hannifin (PH) do?

Parker Hannifin makes motion and control technologies: hydraulics, pneumatics, filtration, sealing and electromechanical systems used across industrial machinery and aerospace.

Full PH guide

ATMU vs PH: 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.

  • ATMU drivers: Aftermarket filtration demand; The Koch Filter industrial pivot.
  • PH drivers: Aerospace is now a major earnings engine; Aftermarket and replacement demand.

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: The most obvious exposure is cyclical: first-fit volumes track new truck and off-highway equipment builds, and those have been pressured by tariffs, freight softness and uncertainty around 2027 model-year emissions rules. For PH, industrial demand is cyclical and tracks capital spending, manufacturing output and construction.

ATMU or PH: 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 ATMU if you believe its drivers more; PH 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 ATMU and PH guides.

ATMU vs PH: the full fundamentals

ATMU. First quarter 2026 sales rose 14.6% to $477.5 million with adjusted EPS of $0.69, and full-year guidance calls for $1.945 billion to $2.015 billion of revenue, a 19.5% to 20.5% adjusted EBITDA margin and adjusted EPS of $2.75 to $3.00. At roughly 21 times trailing earnings the stock trades at a modest premium to the broader industrial group, which reflects the recurring aftermarket mix rather than the growth rate. Net debt sits near $789 million, or a little over two times adjusted EBITDA, following the Koch Filter purchase.

PH. Parker is a diversified industrial whose story in recent years has been margin expansion and the aerospace mix shift rather than rapid revenue growth. Verify current segment margins and leverage.

Headline figures (approximate, August 2026): ATMU shows revenue (ttm) ~$1.83B, net income (ttm) ~$211M, eps (ttm) ~$2.55, market cap ~$4.4B; PH shows business model Motion and control components across industrial and aerospace, key mix shift Aerospace substantially larger after the Meggitt acquisition, revenue quality Large aftermarket and replacement component, balance sheet Carries acquisition debt; verify current leverage.

The bottom line: ATMU vs PH

ATMU and PH 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 ATMU and PH exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.

Wondering how ATMU or PH 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 Atmus Filtration Technologies with AI

Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how ATMU 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.

FAQ

What is the difference between ATMU and PH?

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Atmus Filtration Technologies designs and manufactures filtration products, principally under the Fleetguard and Nelson brands, for commercial trucks, construction and agricultural equipment, power generation and marine engines. Parker Hannifin makes motion and control technologies: hydraulics, pneumatics, filtration, sealing and electromechanical systems used across industrial machinery and aerospace. They show up together because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses, so the better fit depends on which thesis you are expressing.

Is ATMU or PH the better stock?

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Neither is universally better. PH is the larger incumbent; ATMU 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, ATMU or PH?

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On forward P/E (as of August 2026), ATMU trades at 16.66x and PH at 28.63x, so ATMU 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 ATMU and PH?

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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 ATMU vs PH?

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ATMU: The most obvious exposure is cyclical: first-fit volumes track new truck and off-highway equipment builds, and those have been pressured by tariffs, freight softness and uncertainty around 2027 model-year emissions rules. Tariffs cut two ways for Atmus, raising input costs on cross-border content while also lifting the price of the vehicles its filters go into. The balance sheet is now materially more levered after Koch, with about $998 million of total debt against roughly $210 million of cash and only about $404 million of book equity, which narrows the margin for error if end markets deteriorate. Competition is intense and consolidating fast, with Parker Hannifin agreeing to buy Filtration Group for roughly $9.25 billion and Donaldson adding Facet, meaning Atmus is one of the smaller players in a market of much larger diversified industrials. The long-horizon risk is powertrain mix: a genuine shift away from diesel would shrink the installed base that generates replacement demand, though the timeline for heavy-duty trucking is measured in decades rather than years. Finally, integration risk on Koch is real, since building industrial air filtration into a durable second leg requires capabilities the legacy business did not have. PH: Industrial demand is cyclical and tracks capital spending, manufacturing output and construction. The Meggitt acquisition added meaningful debt, so deleveraging progress matters. Aerospace revenue depends on air traffic and defence budgets. As a global manufacturer, Parker is exposed to currency, tariffs and supply-chain disruption.

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

    ATMU vs PH: How Atmus Filtration Technologies and Parker Hannifin Compare (2026) - Walnut AI Investing App