BA
The Boeing Company
BA has the edge over NSC overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
NSC
Norfolk Southern Corporation
NSC has slightly 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.
NSC Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Stable |
NSC's revenue and profitability are currently healthy, and its cash flow and balance sheet are 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 NSC in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
NSC PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 18x | $216 | -35% |
| Fair | 22x | $268 | -20% |
| Forward | 23x | $333 | — |
| Current | 28x | $333 | — |
| Expensive | 30x | $362 | +8.7% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NSC's PE is in its expensive range at 28x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 23x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
BA Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Returning to profit | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect BA to return to profit, with revenue growing. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
NSC Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for NSC, with profitability improving.
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.
NSC Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $14.19 | +19% |
| Q3 2026 | $11.93 | -9.1% |
| Q2 2026 | $11.72 | -21% |
| Q1 2026 | $11.87 | -19% |
| Q4 2025 | $12.75 | +10% |
| Q3 2025 | $13.12 | +23% |
| Q2 2025 | $14.81 | +87% |
| Q1 2025 | $14.65 | +136% |
| Q4 2024 | $11.57 | +44% |
NSC 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 NSC on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| 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.
NSC Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3.5B | +14% |
| Q2 2026 | $3.5B | +11% |
| Q1 2026 | $3B | +0.2% |
| Q4 2025 | $3B | -1.7% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.1B | +1.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.1B | +2.2% |
| Q1 2025 | $3B | -0.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $3B | -1.6% |
NSC's revenue has picked up after three years of holding roughly level: $3.5B last quarter, up 14% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 33% | -2.8 points |
| Q2 2026 | 32% | -5.3 points |
| Q1 2026 | 29% | -9 points |
| Q4 2025 | 32% | -5.9 points |
| Q3 2025 | 35% | -17 points |
| Q2 2025 | 38% | +0.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 38% | +31 points |
| Q4 2024 | 37% | +11 points |
NSC 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's free cash flow has turned positive after six years mostly in the red: $16M over the past year.
NSC Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $736M | +2.2% |
| Q2 2026 | $615M | +2.2% |
| Q1 2026 | -$38M | -108% |
| Q4 2025 | $334M | +21% |
| Q3 2025 | $720M | +12% |
| Q2 2025 | $602M | +29% |
| Q1 2025 | $501M | +78% |
| Q4 2024 | $276M | +$456M |
NSC still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2022 peak: $1.6B over the past year.
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 | — |
NSC Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.1% | +200K shares |
| 1 year | +0.2% | +500K shares |
| 3 years | -0.8% | -1.8M shares |
| 5 years | -8.6% | -21.2M shares |
| Available history | -15% | -40.4M shares |
NSC has the edge over BA on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q2 2026 | — |
| Q1 2026 | $5M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | $78M |
| Q2 2025 | $208M |
| Q1 2025 | $248M |
| Q4 2024 | — |
NSC has spent almost nothing on buybacks in the past year.
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.
NSC Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 2.7x | Moderate |
| Q2 2026 | 2.9x | Moderate |
| Q1 2026 | 2.9x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 2.7x | Moderate |
| Q3 2025 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q2 2025 | 2.5x | Moderate |
| Q1 2025 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | 2.9x | Moderate |
NSC 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).
NSC Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 54.6 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 52.4 | Neutral |
NSC's weekly RSI is 55 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 52 (neutral).
BA PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | BA | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 18x | 24x | 26% below |
| PE % | 0 | 58 | 58 pts below |
BA has the edge over NSC on valuation relative to its sector.
NSC PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | NSC | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 28x | 24x | 16% above |
| PE % | 77 | 58 | 19 pts above |
NSC is trading at 28x earnings, a 16% premium to the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
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.
NSC Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $325.1 | 2.5% above |
| 20 week MA | $330.5 | 0.8% above |
| 50 week MA | $312.9 | 6.5% above |
| 100 week MA | $285.5 | 17% above |
| 200 week MA | $257.8 | 29% above |
NSC 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.
NSC Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $195.2 | $234.4 | +20% |
| 2021 | $234.4 | $287.5 | +23% |
| 2022 | $287.5 | $247.5 | -14% |
| 2023 | $247.5 | $236.4 | -4.5% |
| 2024 | $236.4 | $235.3 | -0.5% |
| 2025 | $235.3 | $291.0 | +24% |
| 2026 YTD | $291.0 | $333.2 | +15% |
NSC has the edge over BA on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.