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what it is
Roper buys niche software and industrial tech businesses, then collects recurring revenue from customers who hate switching.
how it gets paid
Last year Roper Tech made $7.9B in revenue. application software was the main engine at $2.8B, or 35% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 12.3% last year. The 6% organic revenue growth matters most because it shows the business can still grow before acquisitions do the usual heavy lifting.
what just happened
Roper posted Q4 EPS of $5.21, matching estimates, while revenue kept compounding off a bigger base.
At a glance
A balance sheet — strong enough to weather a downturn
100/100 earnings predictability — you can trust these numbers
20.8x trailing p/e — priced about right
0.9% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
8.0% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 79/100 — average
What they do
Roper buys niche software and industrial tech businesses, then collects recurring revenue from customers who hate switching.
Switching costs → leaving is painful → so what: customers keep paying. If your utility, lab, or hospital runs on Roper software, changing vendors risks downtime, retraining, and bad data handoffs. That stickiness helps support a 69.2% gross margin and 100 out of 100 earnings predictability.
How they make money
$7.9B
annual revenue · their business grew +12.3% last year
application software
$2.8B
+14.0%
network software
$2.1B
+14.0%
medical products and software
$1.2B
+6.0%
industrial technology products
$1.0B
+6.0%
energy systems, controls, and RF products
$0.8B
+6.0%
The products that matter
vertical software platforms
Application Software
one of 3 operating groups
management said the business runs across three segments, and companywide organic growth was 6%. This is part of the recurring engine investors usually pay up for.
predictable
network and compliance software
Network Software
part of a $7.9B revenue base
The company does not break out segment revenue on this page. That thin disclosure is the story. You know it is inside a $7.9B business with 26.9% net margins, but not how much of the pie it owns here.
thin disclosure
specialty tech-enabled products
Technology-Enabled Products
latest quarter revenue topped $2.0B
This is the part that keeps Roper from being a pure software multiple story. It adds diversification, but it also keeps you watching execution and litigation more closely.
diversifier
Key numbers
69.2%
gross margin
Gross margin → money left after direct costs → so what: Roper sells expensive-to-replace products and software, not commodity hardware.
$9.2B
long-term debt
Long-term debt → money already spoken for → so what: leverage is real, but it is 17% of capital and sits inside an A-rated balance sheet.
28.3%
operating margin
Operating margin → profit after running the business → so what: nearly 28 cents of every sales dollar survives overhead.
100
predictability score
Predictability → how steady earnings have been → so what: this business has been unusually consistent for a serial acquirer.
Financial health
A
strength
- balance sheet grade A — very strong financial position
- risk rank 1 — safer than 95% of stocks
- price stability 100 / 100
- long-term debt $9.2B (17% of capital)
- net profit margin 26.0% — keeps 26 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 9% — $0.09 profit for every $1 investors have put in
A with balance sheet grade and risk rank standing out. your money faces less risk here than at most public companies.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in ROP 3 years ago → it's now worth $9,400.
The index would have given you $14,770.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Roper posted Q4 EPS of $5.21, matching estimates, while revenue kept compounding off a bigger base.
In Q3, total revenue rose 14% vs. prior year and topped $2 billion. Organic revenue rose 6%, EPS hit $5.14, and free cash flow grew 17% to $842 million.
$2.0B+
revenue
$5.21
eps
69.2%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 6% organic revenue growth matters most because it shows the business can still grow before acquisitions do the usual heavy lifting.
-
in the third quarter, total revenue rose 14% vs. prior year, and surpassed the $2 billion mark.
-
organic revenue increased 6%, reflecting steady performance across the company’s three segments (application software, network software, and technology-enabled products).
-
regarding the bottom line, earnings per share clocked in at $5.14, climbing 11%.
-
too, free cash flow grew 17%, to $842 million.
-
the florida-based company announced its first share buyback program.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is legacy asbestos and environmental claims.
med
legacy asbestos and environmental liabilities
The filing language here is not subtle. Hazardous-substance cleanup costs and asbestos claims can turn old issues into new cash demands.
Roper has an A balance sheet, but legal liabilities landing while it already carries $9.2B of long-term debt would matter.
med
12 putative antitrust lawsuits
The company disclosed 12 putative class action antitrust lawsuits. Even if they do not become business-breaking, they can still become expensive and distracting.
This is less about a one-day headline and more about multi-quarter legal drag on a business investors pay up for because it is supposed to be steady.
med
growth quality slipping
Reported revenue rose 14% in the latest quarter, but organic growth was 6%. If that spread widens, the story shifts from core compounding to acquisition dependence.
At 20.8x trailing earnings, the market can tolerate steady inorganic help. It gets less patient if the core business slows while dealmaking does the heavy lifting.
When headline growth is 14% but organic growth is 6%, you cannot ignore legal overhangs or integration risk. Add $9.2B of long-term debt and execution mistakes stop looking theoretical.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
key metric
organic growth versus reported growth
The current spread is 14% reported revenue growth versus 6% organic growth. That gap tells you how much of the story is core demand and how much is portfolio engineering.
risk
litigation updates
Watch the asbestos, environmental, and 12 antitrust cases for any shift from background noise to actual cash liability.
next report
free cash flow after the buyback launch
Free cash flow hit $842M in the latest quarter. The next update tells you whether buybacks are being layered on top of strength or used to dress up slower growth.
valuation
whether margins stay premium
A 26.9% net margin is why a $7.9B revenue company can support a $45B market cap. If margins crack, the multiple story changes fast.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
average
Momentum score 3 — in human-speak, analysts see a normal setup, not a breakout or a collapse.
risk profile
safest 5%
Stability score 1 — this has behaved like one of the market's steadier large caps.
chart momentum
average
Technical score 3 — the chart is not giving you a special signal. The thesis has to come from the business.
earnings predictability
100 / 100
Management usually delivers what the market expects. That lowers surprise risk, but it also means the market notices fast if the pattern breaks.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
584 buyers vs. 609 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 98.9M shares.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$370
$690
$416
current price
$530
target midpoint · +27% from current · 3-5yr high: $845 (+105% · 20% ann'l return)
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