Honeywell Technologies HON and Rockwell Automation, Inc. ROK are two familiar names operating in the industrial sector. As rivals, both companies compete in multiple industries with significant overlap in the industrial automation and process control markets.
These companies are poised to benefit from significant growth prospects in industrial and process automation sectors, supported by technological upgrades and higher demand for automation solutions. But which company is better positioned to deliver upside in 2026? Let’s compare their fundamentals, growth prospects and challenges to see which stock stands out now.
The Case for Honeywell
Solid demand for its products and solutions, led by increasing building projects in North America, India and the Middle East, is driving the Building Automation segment. Increasing order rates and capex investments in data centers and health care projects bode well for it. In the second quarter, the segment’s organic revenues increased 9% year over year. Also, healthy growth in orders across the sensing and industrial measurement business bodes well for the Industrial Automation segment. The segment’s organic revenues increased 4% year over year in the second quarter.Â
However, Honeywell has been witnessing persistent weakness in the Process Automation and Technology segment. The segment’s organic revenues decreased 1% on a year-over-year basis in second-quarter 2026 following a decline of 6% in the first quarter. This decline was attributable to softness in the aftermarket business owing to lower refining catalyst shipments. However, growth in orders across LNG and automation projects bodes well.
The company has also been dealing with the adverse impact of rising cost of sales and operating expenses. In the second quarter, the company’s total cost of sales (including the Honeywell Aerospace business) was about $6.07 billion, up 7.2% year over year. The operating income margin declined to 17.9% from 19.8% in the year-ago period.
Its worth noting that on June 29, 2026, Honeywell Technologies became a standalone public company following the spin-off of the Aerospace Technologies business from Honeywell International. The separation completed the company's multi-year portfolio restructuring, creating three independent publicly traded companies. Recently, HON also completed the divestment of its warehouse and workflow solutions business to American Industrial Partners.
The Case for Rockwell
The company continues to see broad-based demand across discrete, hybrid and process markets. Discrete markets posted mid-teens growth in fiscal second-quarter 2026 (ended March 2026), led by Automotive, e-Commerce & Warehouse, and Semiconductor. Within e-Commerce, customers continue to prioritize upgrades and retrofits within existing warehouses over new greenfield builds and the company’s fiscal 2026 guidance factors in a 20% rise in e-Commerce & Warehouse Automation sales.
Automotive is expected to be up mid-single digits while semiconductor is expected to be up around 10%, backed by AI and data center-driven investment. In hybrid markets, Food & Beverage remains strong, reflecting customer investments in healthier products. In the fiscal second quarter, Food & Beverage sales grew high-single digits and are projected to be up in mid-single digits for fiscal 2026. Life Sciences is projected to be up mid-single digits, backed by new capacity projects in North America and the Asia Pacific.
Rockwell continues to drive productivity and pricing to support margins as demand shifts. Management expects pricing actions to fully recover tariff costs in fiscal 2026 and is also using supply-chain optimization to mitigate tariff exposure. For fiscal 2026, ROK raised its reported and organic sales growth outlook to 5-9% and lifted its adjusted EPS range to $12.50-$13.10.
The company continues to build momentum through new customer engagements across its end markets. Recent project awards in industrial automation and infrastructure underscore sustained demand for its solutions. Meanwhile, data centers remain a key growth driver, with customers investing in facility upgrades and new capacity to improve operational reliability, energy efficiency and deployment speed.
However, the Lifecycle Services segment has continued to face weak organic demand, as customers delay larger capital projects while maintaining focus on smaller productivity improvements and modernization initiatives.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HON & ROK
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HON’s 2026 earnings per share (EPS) implies a year-over-year decline of 58%. Honeywell’s EPS estimates for both 2026 and 2027 have plunged over the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The consensus estimate for ROK’s fiscal 2026 EPS implies year-over-year growth of 24%. The EPS estimates for both fiscal 2026 and fiscal 2027 have been raised over the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Price Performance and Valuation of HON & ROK
Post spin-off of its Aerospace business, Honeywell shares have gained 7.9%, while Rockwell stock has lost 3.4% over the same time frame.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Honeywell is trading at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings ratio of 27.06X, above its median of 19.85X over the past year. Rockwell’s forward earnings multiple sits at 32.41X, close to its median of 31.46X over the same time frame.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Final Take on HON & ROK
Honeywell Technologies’ market leadership position and diversified product portfolio, weakness in the Process Automation and Technology unit and rising operating expenses pose a threat to its near-term catalysts. The spin-off of the Aerospace business will also likely weigh on its top and-bottom-line results in the quarters ahead. The downward estimate revision activity in earnings warrants a cautious approach for existing investors.
In contrast, Rockwell’s steady demand across discrete, hybrid and process markets, along with its productivity measures and pricing actions, will likely drive its long-term performance. Despite its steeper valuation, ROK seems to be a better pick due to strong estimates and better prospects for sales and profit growth.
While ROK currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), HON has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).
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