Coherent Vs Amphenol: Which Stock Is The Better Buy?
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Coherent (COHR) and Amphenol (APH) are both bought for AI data center spending, and deciding between them depends on whether Coherent’s heavy spending turns booked orders into sales and cash. Coherent makes its own lasers and cannot produce enough of them, while Amphenol expands partly by buying companies. You pay 51.1 times earnings for Coherent and 33.0 for Amphenol. Are those orders showing up in Coherent’s revenue yet?
Coherent’s Revenue Growth Picked Up In Fiscal Q4 2026
Coherent’s revenue rose 33.7% from a year earlier in fiscal Q4 2026, marking its fastest growth in the last five quarters. Management said on the August 12, 2026 call that the company is booked through the end of calendar 2027, and they guided fiscal Q1 2027 revenue to a range of $2.2 billion to $2.4 billion, up from $2.05 billion in fiscal Q4.
Production limits on lasers cap Coherent’s sales. Management called its indium phosphide capacity the primary constraint and said the company was on track to double its own output by the end of fiscal Q1 2027, putting it one quarter ahead of plan.
Amphenol’s latest news comes from a quarter it has already reported. Its sales rose 65% from a year earlier to $10.2 billion in the third quarter of 2026, finishing above the top of its own guidance. Organic sales grew 37%, with companies Amphenol bought providing part of that growth.
Coherent Is Spending More Cash Than It Brings In
Coherent recorded negative free cash flow of $1.03 billion in fiscal 2026, even as it reported net income of $805 million. In fiscal Q1 2026, its $226 million net income exceeded its $172 million operating income. That quarter included the first of the two business sales described below. Management said capital spending hit $556 million in fiscal Q4, compared with $131 million a year earlier, and expects that spending to rise again in fiscal Q1 2027.
Management puts the payback period on its data center investments at roughly 18 months, but Coherent posted negative free cash flow in each of the last five quarters. The company did cut its debt by repaying $513 million in fiscal 2026. It also sold its aerospace and defense business and a product division in Munich, Germany.
Amphenol’s growth already brings in cash. The company generated $5.12 billion in free cash flow over its latest twelve months. In the third quarter alone, management said, free cash flow came to 80% of net income.
On Sales, Coherent And Amphenol Are Priced Alike
Coherent trades at 5.8 times its sales over the past twelve months, compared with 5.9 times for Amphenol. Coherent’s higher P/E comes from its thinner profit on each dollar of sales: it recorded an 11.3% net margin, against 18.0% for Amphenol.
Coherent’s operating margin is widening, though. It rose in every quarter of fiscal 2026, reaching 14.9% in fiscal Q4 2026, up from 9.5% in fiscal Q4 2025.
Amphenol is growing faster, posting a 57.6% revenue increase over its latest twelve months, against 22.5% for Coherent. For its size, Coherent carries slightly less debt at 8.6% of its market value, compared with 9.1% for Amphenol.
If Coherent’s new capacity or its heavy spending does not pay off, you would hold the stock with the higher P/E and the thinner margin.
Amphenol Comes Out Ahead On Most Measures Today
Amphenol leads with the lower P/E, faster growth and wider margins. It also raised its 2026 outlook for the CommScope business it acquired, to $5.1 billion in sales and a $0.18 addition to Amphenol’s adjusted earnings per share. Coherent’s edge lies in its lower debt and an operating margin that keeps widening.
Coherent’s orders are showing up in its revenue, and management said in August that its laser capacity was ahead of plan. Its cash is not yet keeping up with its spending. Coherent’s free cash flow is the number to watch when it reports fiscal Q1 2027, expected in November 2026.
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