MLI
Mueller Industries, Inc.
MLI has the edge over RKLB overall, supported by lower modeled downside and stronger modeled upside.
RKLB
Rocket Lab USA, Inc.
RKLB offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
MLI Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
MLI's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
RKLB Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Under pressure | |
| Weak | |
| Unavailable |
RKLB's revenue is currently strong, but its profitability and cash flow are under pressure. There isn't enough data to rate its balance sheet.
MLI PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 6.4x | $25.12 | -54% |
| Forward | 12x | $54.84 | — |
| Fair | 13x | $52.03 | -5.1% |
| Current | 14x | $54.84 | — |
| Expensive | 16x | $63.33 | +15% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MLI's PE is in its fair range at 14x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 12x next year's earnings.
RKLB PE Valuation
RKLB has no meaningful PE right now: it lost money over the past year.
MLI Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for MLI, but weaker profitability.
RKLB Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Losses shrinking | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
RKLB has the edge over MLI on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
MLI Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $4.41 | +13% |
| Q3 2026 | $3.90 | +16% |
| Q2 2026 | $3.83 | +22% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.82 | +39% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.43 | +29% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.35 | +30% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.15 | +30% |
| Q1 2025 | $2.75 | +10% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.65 | -0.4% |
MLI has the edge over RKLB on earnings quality, reporting a profit while its opponent remains loss making.
RKLB Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$0.36 | +$0.03 |
| Q2 2026 | -$0.27 | +$0.19 |
| Q1 2026 | -$0.32 | +$0.09 |
| Q4 2025 | -$0.37 | +$0.01 |
| Q3 2025 | -$0.39 | -$0.02 |
| Q2 2025 | -$0.46 | -$0.11 |
| Q1 2025 | -$0.41 | -$0.04 |
| Q4 2024 | -$0.38 | $0.00 |
RKLB is still losing money, but less than at its worst: $0.36 per share over the past year, against $0.46 at its worst in mid-2025.
MLI Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.4B | +32% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.4B | +25% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.2B | +19% |
| Q4 2025 | $962.4M | +4.2% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.1B | +8% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.1B | +14% |
| Q1 2025 | $1B | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $923.5M | +26% |
MLI's revenue has grown year over year for 10 quarters in a row: $1.4B last quarter, up 32% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 20% | -5.8 points |
| Q2 2026 | 22% | -5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 26% | +5.6 points |
| Q4 2025 | 18% | -0.6 points |
| Q3 2025 | 26% | +4.9 points |
| Q2 2025 | 27% | +5.7 points |
| Q1 2025 | 21% | -1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 18% | 0 points |
MLI has the edge over RKLB on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
RKLB Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $267.8M | +73% |
| Q2 2026 | $234.1M | +62% |
| Q1 2026 | $200.3M | +63% |
| Q4 2025 | $179.7M | +36% |
| Q3 2025 | $155.1M | +48% |
| Q2 2025 | $144.5M | +36% |
| Q1 2025 | $122.6M | +32% |
| Q4 2024 | $132.4M | +121% |
RKLB has the edge over MLI on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -30% | +8.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | -25% | +17 points |
| Q1 2026 | -28% | +20 points |
| Q4 2025 | -28% | +11 points |
| Q3 2025 | -38% | +12 points |
| Q2 2025 | -41% | -0.5 points |
| Q1 2025 | -48% | -1.9 points |
| Q4 2024 | -39% | +41 points |
RKLB's operating margin was −30% last quarter, up 8.5 points from the same quarter a year ago.
MLI Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $315M | +8% |
| Q2 2026 | $190.7M | +8% |
| Q1 2026 | $62.5M | -36% |
| Q4 2025 | $121.4M | +9.2% |
| Q3 2025 | $291.8M | +42% |
| Q2 2025 | $176.5M | +93% |
| Q1 2025 | $97M | -38% |
| Q4 2024 | $111.2M | -30% |
MLI has the edge over RKLB on cash generation, producing positive trailing cash flow while its opponent burns cash.
RKLB Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$23.9M | +$45.5M |
| Q2 2026 | -$110.1M | -$54.8M |
| Q1 2026 | -$77.4M | +$5.5M |
| Q4 2025 | -$114.2M | -$90.2M |
| Q3 2025 | -$69.4M | -$27.5M |
| Q2 2025 | -$55.3M | -$26.9M |
| Q1 2025 | -$82.9M | -$61.1M |
| Q4 2024 | -$23.9M | +$28.7M |
RKLB has burned cash in almost every quarter: −$326M over the past year, against −$232M the year before.
MLI Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.5% | -1.1M shares |
| 1 year | -0.8% | -1.7M shares |
| 3 years | -3.3% | -7.6M shares |
| 5 years | -3.1% | -7.1M shares |
| Available history | -2.3% | -5.3M shares |
MLI has the edge over RKLB on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $201.9M |
| Q2 2026 | $1.5M |
| Q1 2026 | $75M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $243.6M |
| Q4 2024 | — |
MLI spent $278M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 14% from the year before.
RKLB Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +3.6% | +22.6M shares |
| 1 year | +23% | +124M shares |
| 3 years | +35% | +168M shares |
| 5 years | +46% | +204M shares |
RKLB has 652M diluted shares, up 23% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2020 | — |
| Q2 2020 | — |
| Q1 2020 | — |
MLI Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -1.3x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -1.2x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -1.2x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.3x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -1.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -1.1x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -1.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -1.3x | Net Cash |
MLI has more cash than debt.
RKLB Net Leverage
RKLB's operating earnings (EBITDA) were negative over the past year, so its debt can't be measured against them.
MLI Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 40.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 7.9 | Oversold |
MLI's weekly RSI is 41 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 8 (oversold).
RKLB Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 46.8 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 27.6 | Neutral |
RKLB's weekly RSI is 47 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 28 (neutral).
MLI PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | MLI | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 14x | 24x | 42% below |
| PE % | 56 | 58 | 2 pts below |
MLI is trading at 14x earnings, a 42% discount to the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
RKLB PE vs Industrials Sector
RKLB has no meaningful PE right now: it lost money over the past year.
MLI Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $57.5 | 4.7% below |
| 20 week MA | $60.4 | 9.2% below |
| 50 week MA | $61.4 | 11% below |
| 100 week MA | $52.2 | 5.1% above |
| 200 week MA | $38.8 | 41% above |
MLI has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 41% above its 200-week average.
RKLB Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $61.4 | 4.3% above |
| 20 week MA | $68.1 | 5.9% below |
| 50 week MA | $77.6 | 17% below |
| 100 week MA | $56.5 | 13% above |
| 200 week MA | $31.4 | 104% above |
RKLB has the edge over MLI on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
MLI Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $7.94 | $8.73 | +9.9% |
| 2021 | $8.73 | $14.6 | +68% |
| 2022 | $14.6 | $14.9 | +2% |
| 2023 | $14.9 | $23.6 | +58% |
| 2024 | $23.6 | $40.0 | +70% |
| 2025 | $40.0 | $59.1 | +48% |
| 2026 YTD | $59.1 | $54.8 | -7.2% |
MLI has the edge over RKLB on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
RKLB Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $9.82 | $10.3 | +4.9% |
| 2021 | $10.3 | $12.0 | +17% |
| 2022 | $12.0 | $3.77 | -69% |
| 2023 | $3.77 | $5.53 | +47% |
| 2024 | $5.53 | $27.2 | +392% |
| 2025 | $27.2 | $70.7 | +160% |
| 2026 YTD | $70.7 | $64.1 | -9.3% |
RKLB's yearly returns have swung widely, from +392% in 2024 to −69% in 2022. It's down 9.3% so far in 2026.