IPGP
IPG Photonics Corporation
IPGP's outlook is improving, though it still trails on the overall score.
MU
Micron Technology, Inc.
MU has the edge over IPGP overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
IPGP Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Strong |
IPGP's revenue, profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its cash flow is stable.
MU Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
MU's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently strong.
IPGP PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 21x | $19.24 | -73% |
| Forward | 35x | $70.86 | — |
| Fair | 47x | $43.25 | -39% |
| Current | 76x | $70.86 | — |
| Expensive | 111x | $103 | +46% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
IPGP's PE is in its expensive range at 76x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 35x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
MU PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 4.6x | $798 | — |
| Cheap | 10x | $777 | -2.7% |
| Current | 11x | $798 | — |
| Fair | 22x | $1,646 | +106% |
| Expensive | 32x | $2,404 | +201% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MU has the edge over IPGP in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
IPGP Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for IPGP, with profitability improving. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
MU Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Broad | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect strong earnings and revenue growth for MU, with profitability improving.
IPGP Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $2.03 | +118% |
| Q3 2026 | $0.93 | +33% |
| Q2 2026 | $0.64 | +$5.45 |
| Q1 2026 | $0.68 | +$5.20 |
| Q4 2025 | $0.73 | +$4.82 |
| Q3 2025 | $0.70 | +$4.16 |
| Q2 2025 | -$4.81 | -259% |
| Q1 2025 | -$4.52 | -216% |
| Q4 2024 | -$4.09 | -188% |
IPGP's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $0.93 over the past year, against $5.21 in early 2022.
MU Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $174.95 | +135% |
| Q3 2026 | $74.33 | +879% |
| Q2 2026 | $44.17 | +693% |
| Q1 2026 | $21.18 | +405% |
| Q4 2025 | $10.52 | +201% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.59 | +984% |
| Q2 2025 | $5.57 | +$6.99 |
| Q1 2025 | $4.19 | +$7.64 |
| Q4 2024 | $3.49 | +$9.77 |
MU has the edge over IPGP on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
IPGP Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $287.5M | +15% |
| Q2 2026 | $278.6M | +11% |
| Q1 2026 | $265.5M | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $274.5M | +17% |
| Q3 2025 | $250.8M | +7.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $250.7M | -2.7% |
| Q1 2025 | $227.8M | -9.6% |
| Q4 2024 | $234.3M | -22% |
IPGP's revenue is recovering but still below its 2021 peak: $288M last quarter, up 15% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 7.2% | +4.1 points |
| Q2 2026 | 1.6% | +1.6 points |
| Q1 2026 | -2.9% | -3.7 points |
| Q4 2025 | 1.2% | -4.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 3.1% | +112 points |
| Q2 2025 | 0% | -4.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 0.8% | -6.8 points |
| Q4 2024 | 6% | -3.7 points |
IPGP's operating margin was 7.2% last quarter, up 4.1 points from the same quarter a year ago.
MU Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $54.2B | +379% |
| Q2 2026 | $41.5B | +346% |
| Q1 2026 | $23.9B | +196% |
| Q4 2025 | $13.6B | +57% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.3B | +46% |
| Q2 2025 | $9.3B | +37% |
| Q1 2025 | $8.1B | +38% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.7B | +84% |
MU has the edge over IPGP on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 81% | +48 points |
| Q2 2026 | 80% | +57 points |
| Q1 2026 | 68% | +46 points |
| Q4 2025 | 45% | +20 points |
| Q3 2025 | 32% | +13 points |
| Q2 2025 | 23% | +13 points |
| Q1 2025 | 22% | +19 points |
| Q4 2024 | 25% | +49 points |
MU has the edge over IPGP on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
IPGP Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $28.8M | +98% |
| Q2 2026 | $17.1M | +$34.7M |
| Q1 2026 | -$21.8M | -$10.4M |
| Q4 2025 | $10.9M | -78% |
| Q3 2025 | $14.6M | -66% |
| Q2 2025 | -$17.6M | -160% |
| Q1 2025 | -$11.4M | -143% |
| Q4 2024 | $50.6M | -37% |
IPGP still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2019 peak: $35M over the past year.
MU Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $32.9B | +45543% |
| Q2 2026 | $17.6B | +951% |
| Q1 2026 | $5.5B | +$5.6B |
| Q4 2025 | $3B | +7853% |
| Q3 2025 | $72M | -75% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.7B | +322% |
| Q1 2025 | -$113M | +$52M |
| Q4 2024 | $38M | +$433M |
MU has the edge over IPGP on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
IPGP Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.2% | -72.9K shares |
| 1 year | +0.7% | +284K shares |
| 3 years | -9.6% | -4.5M shares |
| 5 years | -20% | -11M shares |
| Available history | -20% | -11M shares |
IPGP has the edge over MU on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $2.6M |
| Q2 2026 | — |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2024 | $57.3M |
| Q3 2024 | $74.5M |
| Q2 2024 | $122.4M |
| Q1 2024 | $89.6M |
| Q4 2023 | $64M |
MU Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.2% | -2M shares |
| 1 year | +1.6% | +18M shares |
| 3 years | +4.6% | +50M shares |
| 5 years | +0.2% | +2M shares |
| Available history | +1.2% | +14M shares |
MU has 1.1B diluted shares, up 1.6% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q2 2026 | — |
| Q1 2026 | $350M |
| Q4 2025 | $300M |
| Q3 2024 | $300M |
| Q2 2024 | — |
| Q1 2024 | — |
| Q4 2023 | — |
MU has spent almost nothing on buybacks in the past year.
IPGP Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -8.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -5.3x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -6.8x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -5.1x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -4.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2024 | -4.0x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2024 | -2.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2023 | -1.7x | Net Cash |
IPGP has the edge over MU on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
MU Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.6x | Very low |
MU has more cash than debt.
IPGP Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 39.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 17.8 | Oversold |
IPGP's weekly RSI is 39 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 18 (oversold).
MU Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 47.1 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 26.9 | Neutral |
MU's weekly RSI is 47 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 27 (neutral).
IPGP PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | IPGP | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 76x | 28x | 173% above |
| PE % | 76 | 35 | 41 pts above |
IPGP is trading at 76x earnings, a 173% premium to the Technology sector's median of 28x.
MU PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | MU | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 11x | 28x | 61% below |
| PE % | 18 | 35 | 17 pts below |
MU has the edge over IPGP on valuation relative to its sector.
IPGP Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $73.9 | 4.1% below |
| 20 week MA | $82.3 | 14% below |
| 50 week MA | $97.2 | 27% below |
| 100 week MA | $84.6 | 16% below |
| 200 week MA | $90.9 | 22% below |
IPGP is in a downtrend: it's below all five of its weekly moving averages, and 22% below its 200-week average.
MU Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $914.5 | 13% below |
| 20 week MA | $931.0 | 14% below |
| 50 week MA | $685.9 | 16% above |
| 100 week MA | $405.4 | 97% above |
| 200 week MA | $246.0 | 225% above |
MU has the edge over IPGP on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
IPGP Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $143.9 | $221.0 | +54% |
| 2021 | $221.0 | $168.9 | -24% |
| 2022 | $168.9 | $92.9 | -45% |
| 2023 | $92.9 | $108.5 | +17% |
| 2024 | $108.5 | $73.4 | -32% |
| 2025 | $73.4 | $75.2 | +2.4% |
| 2026 YTD | $75.2 | $70.9 | -5.7% |
IPGP has finished lower in three of the last six years. It's down 5.7% so far in 2026.
MU Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $54.0 | $70.6 | +31% |
| 2021 | $70.6 | $94.4 | +34% |
| 2022 | $94.4 | $50.2 | -47% |
| 2023 | $50.2 | $85.3 | +70% |
| 2024 | $85.3 | $88.6 | +3.9% |
| 2025 | $88.6 | $284.8 | +221% |
| 2026 YTD | $284.8 | $798.4 | +180% |
MU has the edge over IPGP on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.