DAL vs COST vs BKNG Stock Comparison

Delta Air Lines, Costco Wholesale and Booking Holdings Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
DAL Delta Air Lines, Inc.
$89.29 +7.4% 1M +60.4% 1Y
Market cap
$56.18B
P/E
17.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$71.80B
Div. yield
–
Airlines Industrials
3 wins
COST Costco Wholesale Corp /New
$1,046.47 +13.3% 1M +11.2% 1Y
Market cap
$472.39B
P/E
51.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$303.15B
Div. yield
–
Warehouse Clubs Consumer Staples
4 wins
BKNG Booking Holdings Inc.
$170.97 +8.0% 1M -14.4% 1Y
Market cap
$126.33B
P/E
17.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$28.13B
Div. yield
–
Digital Marketplaces Technology
4 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Costco Wholesale leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Costco Wholesale 4, Booking Holdings 4, Delta Air Lines 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionDALCOSTBKNGLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $56.18B $472.39B $126.33B COST
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 17.1x 51.2x 17.6x DAL
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 17.4x 49.3x 15.7x BKNG
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +14.1% +10.1% +8.0% DAL
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 4.6% 3.0% 25.5% BKNG
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 10.8% 21.7% 75.1% BKNG
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.3x -1.1x 0.4x COST
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +60.4% +11.2% -14.4% DAL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +15.1%/yr +15.3%/yr +10.3%/yr COST
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 38.7% 20.4% 39.4% COST
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 37/100 50/100 59/100 BKNG

Percentile Scorecard

DALCOSTBKNG

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisDALCOSTBKNG
Valuation 57 #59 of 137 8 #37 of 40 63 #62 of 166
Growth 48 #67 of 127 76 #10 of 38 34 #102 of 154
Profitability 48 #66 of 125 72 #11 of 37 99 #3 of 154
Financial Health 23 #114 of 147 85 #7 of 40 43 #103 of 179
Shareholder Returns 9 #80 of 88 11 #25 of 28 55 #44 of 97
Overall 37 50 59
  • DAL ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • COST ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail
  • BKNG ranked among 185 companies in Internet Platforms

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodDALCOSTBKNGSPY
1 month +7.4%+13.3%+8.0% -1.0%
3 months -4.1%+11.1%-17.4% -0.4%
6 months +21.7%+5.1%+1.6% +4.5%
Year to date +28.7%+21.4%-20.2% +12.4%
1 year +60.4%+11.2%-14.4% +13.6%
3 years +167.7%+86.6%+49.5% +76.4%
3 years, per year +38.9%+23.1%+14.4% +20.8%
5 years +101.6%+103.9%+63.2% +63.7%
5 years, per year +15.1%+15.3%+10.3% +10.4%
10 years +108.2%+635.7%+200.1% +267.7%
10 years, per year +7.6%+22.1%+11.6% +13.9%

Risk

MeasureDALCOSTBKNGSPY
Volatility, 1Y 38.7%20.4%39.4% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 33.0%19.9%38.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.70-0.180.91 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.560.55-0.37 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -48.0%-31.5%-39.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -4.7%-4.4%-22.2% -1.6%
52-week high $93.66$1,094.32$219.68 $779.14
52-week low $55.65$850.00$147.94 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleDALCOSTBKNG
P/E now vs peer median 17.8xmedian 14.5x 50.4xmedian 21.1x 17.9xmedian 18.2x
P/S now vs peer median 0.8xmedian 1.0x 1.5xmedian 0.5x 4.5xmedian 1.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 8.8xmedian 8.2x 31.3xmedian 9.9x 13.4xmedian 15.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median 19.4xmedian 12.9x 49.4xmedian 16.1x 13.8xmedian 12.2x
P/B now vs peer median 2.6xmedian 1.2x 13.0xmedian 2.9x -12.2xmedian 1.8x
PEG now vs peer median -9.58median 0.64 3.70median 0.99 -0.30median 0.38

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsDALCOSTBKNG
Revenue $71.80B $303.15B $28.13B
Gross profit – $38.88B –
Operating income $5.29B $11.69B $9.22B
Net income $3.29B $9.23B $7.18B
Free cash flow $3.02B $9.38B $9.24B
EPS (diluted) $4.99 $20.76 $9.53
Cash & equivalents $3.79B $20.21B $15.81B
Total debt $13.95B $6.16B $20.06B
Shares (diluted) 659.00M 444.43M 753.00M
Enterprise value $38.36B $395.67B $60.08B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricDALCOSTBKNG
P/E 17.8x 50.4x 17.9x
P/FCF 19.4x 49.4x 13.8x
P/Operating cash flow 7.3x 29.3x 13.3x
P/S 0.8x 1.5x 4.5x
P/B 2.6x 13.0x -12.2x
P/Tangible book 3.5x 13.0x -11.4x
EV/EBITDA 8.8x 31.3x 13.4x
EV/EBIT 13.0x 38.4x 14.3x
EV/Revenue 1.0x 1.5x 4.7x
EV/FCF 22.8x 47.8x 14.2x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.6x 28.4x 13.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -9.58 3.70 -0.30

Growth

14 metrics
MetricDALCOSTBKNG
Revenue growth (1Y) 14.1% 10.1% 8.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.8% 7.8% 10.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 10.0% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 9.4% –
Operating income growth (1Y) -12.9% 12.5% 8.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -2.3% 12.9% 11.9%
Net income growth (1Y) -28.9% 13.9% 42.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -1.1% 13.6% 10.6%
EPS growth (1Y) -29.5% 14.0% -93.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -1.9% 13.6% -59.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 0.3% 18.6% 10.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 4.0% 12.6% 5.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -1.7% 19.7% 11.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 36.6% 11.6% 5.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricDALCOSTBKNG
Gross margin – 12.8% –
EBITDA margin 11.0% 4.7% 34.9%
Operating margin 7.4% 3.9% 32.8%
Pretax margin 6.1% 4.0% 32.9%
Net margin 4.6% 3.0% 25.5%
FCF margin 4.2% 3.1% 32.8%
Operating cash flow margin 11.1% 5.2% 34.0%
Return on equity 14.8% 26.6% –
Return on assets 3.8% 10.5% 24.8%
Return on invested capital 10.8% 21.7% 75.1%
Return on capital employed 10.0% 26.7% 96.0%
Asset turnover 0.8x 3.5x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.4x 1.7x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.3% 2.1%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricDALCOSTBKNG
Debt / assets 16.2% 6.9% 71.0%
Debt / equity 0.6x 0.2x -1.9x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.3x -1.1x 0.4x
Debt / FCF 4.6x 0.7x 2.2x
Liabilities / assets 73.8% 59.8% 136.8%
Equity / assets 26.2% 40.2% -36.8%
Interest coverage – 80.6x 8.3x
Current ratio 0.4x 1.1x 1.1x
Quick ratio 0.2x 0.6x 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.5x 0.8x
Altman Z-score 1.55 9.55 6.39

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricDALCOSTBKNG
Dividend yield 0.9% 0.5% 0.7%
Net buyback yield – 0.2% 9.5%
Shareholder yield 0.9% 0.7% 10.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusDALCOSTBKNG
Forward P/E 17.4xFY2026 49.3xFY2027 15.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.14FY2026 $21.22FY2027 $10.90FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -11.7%FY2026 +2.2%FY2027 +19.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +40.7% +22.4% +16.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $71.03BFY2026 $345.44BFY2027 $27.56BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +21.9%FY2026 +14.0%FY2027 +2.4%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -4.2% -4.4% +11.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersDALCOSTBKNG
Held by institutions 88.2% 73.2% 92.9%
Institutions holding 1,514 4,216 1,920
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.6% +5.0% -9.6%
Institutions buying 817 1,923 894
Institutions selling 484 1,708 830
Buyers to sellers 1.69 1.13 1.08

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

DALCOSTBKNG
DAL 1.00 -0.01 0.40
COST -0.01 1.00 0.13
BKNG 0.40 0.13 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, DAL, COST and BKNG?

Costco Wholesale (COST) is the largest by market capitalisation: Delta Air Lines (DAL) $56.18B, Costco Wholesale (COST) $472.39B, Booking Holdings (BKNG) $126.33B.

Which stock is cheaper, DAL, COST and BKNG?

Delta Air Lines (DAL) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Delta Air Lines (DAL) 17.1x, Costco Wholesale (COST) 51.2x, Booking Holdings (BKNG) 17.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Booking Holdings (BKNG) is cheapest (Delta Air Lines (DAL) 17.4x, Costco Wholesale (COST) 49.3x, Booking Holdings (BKNG) 15.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Delta Air Lines (DAL) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Delta Air Lines (DAL) +14.1%, Costco Wholesale (COST) +10.1%, Booking Holdings (BKNG) +8.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Booking Holdings (BKNG) has the highest net margin (Delta Air Lines (DAL) 4.6%, Costco Wholesale (COST) 3.0%, Booking Holdings (BKNG) 25.5%). On return on invested capital, Booking Holdings (BKNG) leads (Delta Air Lines (DAL) 10.8%, Costco Wholesale (COST) 21.7%, Booking Holdings (BKNG) 75.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Delta Air Lines (DAL) returned the most: Delta Air Lines (DAL) +60.4%, Costco Wholesale (COST) +11.2%, Booking Holdings (BKNG) -14.4%. Over five years, Costco Wholesale (COST) compounded fastest (Delta Air Lines (DAL) +15.1%/yr, Costco Wholesale (COST) +15.3%/yr, Booking Holdings (BKNG) +10.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Costco Wholesale (COST) has been the steadiest (Delta Air Lines (DAL) 38.7%, Costco Wholesale (COST) 20.4%, Booking Holdings (BKNG) 39.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, DAL, COST and BKNG?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Costco Wholesale (COST) leads on 4. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.