GD vs RKLB vs SPCE Stock Comparison

General Dynamics, Rocket Lab and Virgin Galactic Holdings Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
GD General Dynamics Corp
$354.89 +5.4% 1M +0.3% 1Y
Market cap
$95.84B
P/E
21.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$54.86B
Div. yield
–
Defense Industrials
6 wins
RKLB Rocket Lab Corp
$58.31 -21.1% 1M -11.1% 1Y
Market cap
$36.40B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$769.15M
Div. yield
–
Space Industrials
2 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

General Dynamics leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (General Dynamics 6, Rocket Lab 2, Virgin Galactic Holdings 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionGDRKLBSPCELeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $95.84B $36.40B $286.31M GD
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 21.4x -220.0x -1.1x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 20.2x — — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.1% +52.5% -28.3% RKLB
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 8.2% -21.5% -20,567.7% GD
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 13.6% -6.7% -43.2% GD
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.5x 14.4x 0.1x SPCE
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +0.3% -11.1% -35.7% GD
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +11.9%/yr +34.3%/yr -62.7%/yr RKLB
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 22.2% 93.0% 111.0% GD
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 71/100 43/100 22/100 GD

Percentile Scorecard

GDRKLBSPCE

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

AxisGDRKLBSPCE
Valuation 87 #14 of 100 19 #81 of 100 17 #83 of 100
Growth 43 #56 of 97 51 #48 of 97 35 #63 of 97
Profitability 79 #21 of 96 31 #67 of 96 1 #95 of 96
Financial Health 63 #40 of 105 89 #13 of 105 34 #70 of 105
Shareholder Returns 86 #10 of 65 23 #50 of 65 –
Overall 71 43 22
  • GD ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • RKLB ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • SPCE ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodGDRKLBSPCESPY
1 month +5.4%-21.1%-16.0% -0.2%
3 months -9.8%-8.7%+8.1% +3.9%
6 months +13.1%-25.8%+12.6% +8.2%
Year to date +5.4%-16.4%-16.5% +12.9%
1 year +0.3%-11.1%-35.7% +12.3%
3 years +49.0%+1,301.7%-90.3% +87.4%
3 years, per year +14.2%+141.3%-54.1% +23.3%
5 years +75.2%+336.1%-99.3% +67.9%
5 years, per year +11.9%+34.3%-62.7% +10.9%
10 years +136.4%—— +261.1%
10 years, per year +9.0%—— +13.7%

Risk

MeasureGDRKLBSPCESPY
Volatility, 1Y 22.2%93.0%111.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 20.9%90.2%110.0% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.333.912.27 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.01-0.12-0.32 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -23.0%-78.3%-99.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -10.4%-61.2%-64.4% -1.2%
52-week high $395.97$150.23$7.52 $779.14
52-week low $312.53$39.48$2.17 $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.

MultipleGDRKLBSPCE
P/E now vs peer median 21.4xmedian 26.5x -221.9xmedian 26.5x -1.2xmedian 26.5x
P/S now vs peer median 1.8xmedian 3.0x 45.3xmedian 3.0x 243.9xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.1xmedian 14.6x -204.3xmedian 14.6x -1.1xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 14.9xmedian 26.4x -94.0xmedian 26.4x —median 26.4x
P/B now vs peer median 3.6xmedian 2.5x 10.0xmedian 2.5x 0.7xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median 2.09median 0.90 -26.83median 0.90 -0.02median 0.90

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 monthsGDRKLBSPCE
Revenue $54.86B $769.15M $1.22M
Gross profit $8.44B $286.62M -$78.91M
Operating income $5.66B -$223.49M -$261.82M
Net income $4.49B -$165.46M -$250.31M
Free cash flow $6.45B -$371.14M –
R&D – $312.42M $51.50M
EPS (diluted) $16.40 $-0.26 $-2.26
Cash & equivalents $4.33B $2.13B $187.34M
Total debt $7.52B $1.72M $219.04M
Shares (diluted) 273.52M 629.68M 110.76M
Enterprise value $82.95B $30.72B -$1.14B

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
MetricGDRKLBSPCE
P/E 21.4x -221.9x -1.2x
P/FCF 14.9x -94.0x –
P/Operating cash flow 12.5x -156.8x –
P/S 1.8x 45.3x 243.9x
P/B 3.6x 10.0x 0.7x
P/Tangible book 3.8x 11.0x 0.7x
EV/EBITDA 15.1x -204.3x -1.1x
EV/EBIT 17.5x -145.8x -1.0x
EV/Revenue 1.8x 42.4x 214.3x
EV/FCF 15.4x -87.8x –
EV/Operating cash flow 12.9x -146.5x –
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.09 -26.83 -0.02

Growth

14 metrics
MetricGDRKLBSPCE
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.1% 52.5% -28.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 10.3% 49.2% -32.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 8.9% 95.7% -7.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 8.6% 109.3% -272.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 9.4% -0.5% 18.7%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 10.3% -11.7% 24.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 9.8% 28.5% 17.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 10.0% -0.4% 24.9%
EPS growth (1Y) 8.8% 41.5% 65.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 10.2% 8.3% 61.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) – -100.8% –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 23.0% -44.7% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – -81.9% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 28.7% -45.7% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricGDRKLBSPCE
Gross margin 15.4% 37.3% -6,484%
EBITDA margin 12.0% -20.7% -20,037%
Operating margin 10.3% -29.1% -21,514%
Pretax margin 9.9% -24.9% -20,565%
Net margin 8.2% -21.5% -20,568%
FCF margin 11.8% -48.3% –
Operating cash flow margin 14.0% -28.9% –
Return on equity 17.0% -5.7% -74.7%
Return on assets 7.5% -4.7% -30.9%
Return on invested capital 13.6% -6.7% -43.2%
Return on capital employed 13.9% -7.5% -42.4%
Asset turnover 0.9x 0.2x 0.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.7x 1.3x –
Stock comp / revenue 0.4% 10.6% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricGDRKLBSPCE
Debt / assets 12.5% 0.0% 26.8%
Debt / equity 0.3x 0.0x 0.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.5x 14.4x 0.1x
Debt / FCF 1.2x 0.0x –
Liabilities / assets 55.4% 16.6% 51.5%
Equity / assets 44.6% 83.4% 48.5%
Interest coverage – -13.9x -22.7x
Current ratio 1.4x 5.5x 1.6x
Quick ratio 2.8x 4.8x 1.3x
Cash ratio 0.2x 4.4x 1.3x
Altman Z-score 4.17 30.42 -5.38

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricGDRKLBSPCE
Dividend yield 1.8% – –
Net buyback yield 0.4% -6.6% –
Shareholder yield 2.1% -6.6% –
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.

ConsensusGDRKLBSPCE
Forward P/E 20.2xFY2026 – –
EPS, next fiscal year $17.56FY2026 $-0.28FY2026 $-2.15FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +13.7%FY2026 – –
EPS growth, the year after +8.9% – –
Revenue, next fiscal year $53.43BFY2026 $918.00MFY2026 $2.15MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +1.7%FY2026 +52.5%FY2026 +39.4%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +12.6% +51.6% +11,899.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersGDRKLBSPCE
Held by institutions 86.5% 51.2% 51.5%
Institutions holding 2,218 1,128 192
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.1% +10.9% +238.1%
Institutions buying 1,018 810 130
Institutions selling 832 238 21
Buyers to sellers 1.22 3.40 6.19

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.

GDRKLBSPCE
GD 1.00 0.22 0.12
RKLB 0.22 1.00 0.37
SPCE 0.12 0.37 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, GD, RKLB and SPCE?

General Dynamics (GD) is the largest by market capitalisation: General Dynamics (GD) $95.84B, Rocket Lab (RKLB) $36.40B, Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE) $286.31M.

Which company is growing faster?

Rocket Lab (RKLB) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: General Dynamics (GD) +9.1%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) +52.5%, Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE) -28.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

General Dynamics (GD) has the highest net margin (General Dynamics (GD) 8.2%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -21.5%, Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE) -20,567.7%). On return on invested capital, General Dynamics (GD) leads (General Dynamics (GD) 13.6%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -6.7%, Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE) -43.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year General Dynamics (GD) returned the most: General Dynamics (GD) +0.3%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -11.1%, Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE) -35.7%. Over five years, Rocket Lab (RKLB) compounded fastest (General Dynamics (GD) +11.9%/yr, Rocket Lab (RKLB) +34.3%/yr, Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE) -62.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, General Dynamics (GD) has been the steadiest (General Dynamics (GD) 22.2%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) 93.0%, Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE) 111.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, GD, RKLB and SPCE?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, General Dynamics (GD) leads on 6. 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.