BA
The Boeing Company
BA has a slight edge over NOC overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
NOC
Northrop Grumman Corporation
NOC has lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
BA Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Under pressure |
BA's profitability is currently healthy, and its revenue and cash flow are stable, but its balance sheet is under pressure.
NOC Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy |
NOC's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue is stable.
BA PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current | 18x | $172 | — |
| Cheap | 51x | $496 | +189% |
| Fair | 82x | $790 | +360% |
| Expensive | 91x | $876 | +411% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
BA has the edge over NOC in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
NOC PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 14x | $427 | -22% |
| Fair | 17x | $548 | -0.3% |
| Current | 17x | $549 | — |
| Forward | 19x | $549 | — |
| Expensive | 25x | $802 | +46% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NOC's PE is in its fair range at 17x. On analysts' estimates for next year's earnings, today's price would be 19x.
BA Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Returning to profit | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
BA has the edge over NOC on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
NOC Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Deteriorating | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for NOC, with profitability holding steady.
BA Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $9.66 | +$23.38 |
| Q2 2026 | $2.78 | +$19.33 |
| Q1 2026 | $2.53 | +$20.49 |
| Q4 2025 | $2.48 | +$20.84 |
| Q3 2025 | -$13.72 | -$0.83 |
| Q2 2025 | -$16.55 | -$10.93 |
| Q1 2025 | -$17.96 | -$14.42 |
| Q4 2024 | -$18.36 | -$14.69 |
BA has returned to profit: it earned $9.66 per share over the past year, after losing money the year before.
NOC Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $29.44 | -7% |
| Q3 2026 | $31.65 | +14% |
| Q2 2026 | $31.43 | +16% |
| Q1 2026 | $31.90 | +26% |
| Q4 2025 | $29.08 | +2.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $27.80 | +72% |
| Q2 2025 | $27.13 | +77% |
| Q1 2025 | $25.34 | +77% |
| Q4 2024 | $28.34 | +109% |
NOC has the edge over BA on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
BA Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $24.2B | +3.9% |
| Q2 2026 | $24.6B | +8% |
| Q1 2026 | $22.2B | +14% |
| Q4 2025 | $23.9B | +57% |
| Q3 2025 | $23.3B | +30% |
| Q2 2025 | $22.7B | +35% |
| Q1 2025 | $19.5B | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $15.2B | -31% |
BA has the edge over NOC on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.5% | +22 points |
| Q2 2026 | 0.6% | +1.4 points |
| Q1 2026 | 2% | -0.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 37% | +61 points |
| Q3 2025 | -21% | +12 points |
| Q2 2025 | -0.8% | +5.7 points |
| Q1 2025 | 2.4% | +2.9 points |
| Q4 2024 | -25% | -26 points |
BA's operating margin was 1.5% last quarter, up 22 points from the same quarter a year ago.
NOC Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $11.1B | +6.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.9B | +5.1% |
| Q1 2026 | $9.9B | +4.4% |
| Q4 2025 | $11.7B | +9.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $10.4B | +4.3% |
| Q2 2025 | $10.4B | +1.3% |
| Q1 2025 | $9.5B | -6.6% |
| Q4 2024 | $10.7B | +0.5% |
NOC's revenue has grown year over year for six quarters in a row: $11.1B last quarter, up 6.7% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 11% | -0.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 10% | -3.7 points |
| Q1 2026 | 10% | +4 points |
| Q4 2025 | 11% | +0.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 12% | +0.7 points |
| Q2 2025 | 14% | +3.1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 6% | -4.5 points |
| Q4 2024 | 10% | +14 points |
NOC has the edge over BA on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
BA Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $464M | +95% |
| Q2 2026 | $631M | +$831M |
| Q1 2026 | -$1.5B | +$836M |
| Q4 2025 | $375M | +$4.5B |
| Q3 2025 | $238M | +$2.2B |
| Q2 2025 | -$200M | +$4.1B |
| Q1 2025 | -$2.3B | +$1.6B |
| Q4 2024 | -$4.1B | -239% |
BA has the edge over NOC on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
NOC Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.4B | +15% |
| Q2 2026 | $978M | +54% |
| Q1 2026 | -$1.8B | -$2M |
| Q4 2025 | $3.2B | +84% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.3B | +72% |
| Q2 2025 | $637M | -42% |
| Q1 2025 | -$1.8B | -$845M |
| Q4 2024 | $1.8B | +8.3% |
NOC generated $3.8B in free cash flow over the past year, up 109% from the year before.
BA Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.3% | +2.1M shares |
| 1 year | +4.3% | +32.8M shares |
| 3 years | +31% | +186M shares |
| 5 years | +35% | +204M shares |
| Available history | +40% | +227M shares |
BA has 793M diluted shares, up 4.3% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2019 | — |
NOC Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | -- |
| 1 year | -0.8% | -1.1M shares |
| 3 years | -6.1% | -9.3M shares |
| 5 years | -11% | -18M shares |
| Available history | -15% | -26M shares |
NOC has the edge over BA on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q2 2026 | — |
| Q1 2026 | $68M |
| Q4 2025 | $456M |
| Q3 2025 | $277M |
| Q2 2025 | $411M |
| Q1 2025 | $480M |
| Q4 2024 | $441M |
NOC spent $524M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 67% from the year before.
BA Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 3.0x | Elevated |
| Q2 2026 | 5.7x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 6.0x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 6.9x | High |
| Q2 2024 | 361.8x | High |
| Q1 2024 | 36.1x | High |
| Q4 2023 | 36.4x | High |
| Q3 2023 | 96.1x | High |
BA's net debt is about 3.0 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from more than 20 years a year ago.
NOC Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.9x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 2.1x | Moderate |
| Q1 2026 | 2.0x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 1.9x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 2.4x | Moderate |
| Q2 2025 | 2.5x | Moderate |
| Q1 2025 | 2.5x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | 2.1x | Moderate |
NOC has the edge over BA on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
BA Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 31.1 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 9.6 | Oversold |
BA's weekly RSI is 31 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 10 (oversold).
NOC Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 50.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 59.3 | Neutral |
NOC's weekly RSI is 51 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 59 (neutral).
BA PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | BA | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 18x | 24x | 26% below |
| PE % | 0 | 58 | 58 pts below |
BA is trading at 18x earnings, a 26% discount to the Industrials sector's median of 24x, though its earnings don't support one.
NOC PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | NOC | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 17x | 24x | 28% below |
| PE % | 50 | 58 | 8 pts below |
NOC has the edge over BA on valuation relative to its sector.
BA Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $184.6 | 7.1% below |
| 20 week MA | $203.8 | 16% below |
| 50 week MA | $215.5 | 20% below |
| 100 week MA | $205.9 | 17% below |
| 200 week MA | $200.6 | 14% below |
BA is in a downtrend: it's below all five of its weekly moving averages, and 14% below its 200-week average.
NOC Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $521.5 | 5.3% above |
| 20 week MA | $534.1 | 2.8% above |
| 50 week MA | $588.6 | 6.7% below |
| 100 week MA | $556.4 | 1.3% below |
| 200 week MA | $511.3 | 7.4% above |
NOC has the edge over BA on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
BA Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $330.1 | $217.2 | -34% |
| 2021 | $217.2 | $204.2 | -6% |
| 2022 | $204.2 | $189.1 | -7.4% |
| 2023 | $189.1 | $260.7 | +38% |
| 2024 | $260.7 | $180.7 | -31% |
| 2025 | $180.7 | $216.4 | +20% |
| 2026 YTD | $216.4 | $171.6 | -21% |
BA has finished lower in four of the last six years. It's down 21% so far in 2026.
NOC Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $346.4 | $299.6 | -14% |
| 2021 | $299.6 | $381.2 | +27% |
| 2022 | $381.2 | $534.8 | +40% |
| 2023 | $534.8 | $468.1 | -12% |
| 2024 | $468.1 | $471.4 | +0.7% |
| 2025 | $471.4 | $577.4 | +22% |
| 2026 YTD | $577.4 | $549.1 | -4.9% |
NOC has the edge over BA on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.