GD vs RKLB Stock Comparison

General Dynamics and Rocket Lab Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
GD General Dynamics Corp
$357.05 +6.1% 1M +1.8% 1Y
Market cap
$96.17B
P/E
21.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$54.86B
Div. yield
–
Defense Industrials
7 wins
RKLB Rocket Lab Corp
$53.82 -27.2% 1M -16.6% 1Y
Market cap
$34.01B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$769.15M
Div. yield
–
Space Industrials
2 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

General Dynamics leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (General Dynamics 7, Rocket Lab 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionGDRKLBLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $96.17B $34.01B GD
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 21.4x -205.5x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 20.3x — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.1% +52.5% RKLB
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 8.2% -21.5% GD
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 13.6% -6.7% GD
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.5x 14.4x GD
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +1.8% -16.6% GD
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +11.7%/yr +33.2%/yr RKLB
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 22.3% 92.8% GD
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 71/100 41/100 GD

Percentile Scorecard

GDRKLB

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

AxisGDRKLB
Valuation 85 #16 of 100 17 #83 of 100
Growth 43 #56 of 97 50 #49 of 97
Profitability 78 #22 of 96 31 #67 of 96
Financial Health 62 #41 of 105 89 #13 of 105
Shareholder Returns 86 #10 of 64 21 #51 of 64
Overall 71 41
  • GD ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • RKLB 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

PeriodGDRKLBSPY
1 month +6.1%-27.2% -0.8%
3 months -8.2%-19.6% +3.5%
6 months +14.2%-34.6% +7.0%
Year to date +6.1%-22.8% +12.2%
1 year +1.8%-16.6% +13.0%
3 years +49.9%+1,193.8% +86.3%
3 years, per year +14.4%+134.9% +23.1%
5 years +73.5%+319.2% +68.6%
5 years, per year +11.7%+33.2% +11.0%
10 years +136.2%— +258.0%
10 years, per year +9.0%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureGDRKLBSPY
Volatility, 1Y 22.3%92.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 20.9%90.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.333.89 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.08-0.18 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -23.0%-78.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.8%-64.2% -1.8%
52-week high $395.97$150.23 $779.14
52-week low $312.53$39.48 $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.

MultipleGDRKLB
P/E now vs peer median 21.5xmedian 26.8x -204.8xmedian 26.8x
P/S now vs peer median 1.8xmedian 2.9x 41.9xmedian 2.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.2xmedian 15.2x -187.5xmedian 15.2x
P/FCF now vs peer median 15.0xmedian 25.5x -86.7xmedian 25.5x
P/B now vs peer median 3.6xmedian 2.5x 9.2xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median 2.10median 0.94 -24.76median 0.94

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 monthsGDRKLB
Revenue $54.86B $769.15M
Gross profit $8.44B $286.62M
Operating income $5.66B -$223.49M
Net income $4.49B -$165.46M
Free cash flow $6.45B -$371.14M
R&D – $312.42M
EPS (diluted) $16.40 $-0.26
Cash & equivalents $4.33B $2.13B
Total debt $7.52B $1.72M
Shares (diluted) 273.52M 629.68M
Enterprise value $83.29B $28.33B

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
MetricGDRKLB
P/E 21.5x -204.8x
P/FCF 15.0x -86.7x
P/Operating cash flow 12.5x -144.7x
P/S 1.8x 41.9x
P/B 3.6x 9.2x
P/Tangible book 3.8x 10.2x
EV/EBITDA 15.2x -187.5x
EV/EBIT 17.6x -133.8x
EV/Revenue 1.8x 38.9x
EV/FCF 15.5x -80.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 13.0x -134.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.10 -24.76

Growth

14 metrics
MetricGDRKLB
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.1% 52.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 10.3% 49.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 8.9% 95.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 8.6% 109.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) 9.4% -0.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 10.3% -11.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 9.8% 28.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 10.0% -0.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 8.8% 41.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 10.2% 8.3%
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
MetricGDRKLB
Gross margin 15.4% 37.3%
EBITDA margin 12.0% -20.7%
Operating margin 10.3% -29.1%
Pretax margin 9.9% -24.9%
Net margin 8.2% -21.5%
FCF margin 11.8% -48.3%
Operating cash flow margin 14.0% -28.9%
Return on equity 17.0% -5.7%
Return on assets 7.5% -4.7%
Return on invested capital 13.6% -6.7%
Return on capital employed 13.9% -7.5%
Asset turnover 0.9x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.7x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.4% 10.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricGDRKLB
Debt / assets 12.5% 0.0%
Debt / equity 0.3x 0.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.5x 14.4x
Debt / FCF 1.2x 0.0x
Liabilities / assets 55.4% 16.6%
Equity / assets 44.6% 83.4%
Interest coverage – -13.9x
Current ratio 1.4x 5.5x
Quick ratio 2.8x 4.8x
Cash ratio 0.2x 4.4x
Altman Z-score 4.18 28.10

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricGDRKLB
Dividend yield 1.8% –
Net buyback yield 0.4% -7.1%
Shareholder yield 2.1% -7.1%
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.

ConsensusGDRKLB
Forward P/E 20.3xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $17.56FY2026 $-0.28FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +13.7%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +8.9% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $53.43BFY2026 $917.64MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +1.7%FY2026 +52.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +12.6% +52.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersGDRKLB
Held by institutions 86.5% 51.2%
Institutions holding 2,217 1,128
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.1% +10.9%
Institutions buying 1,018 810
Institutions selling 831 238
Buyers to sellers 1.23 3.40

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.

GDRKLB
GD 1.00 0.23
RKLB 0.23 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, GD and RKLB?

General Dynamics (GD) is the largest by market capitalisation: General Dynamics (GD) $96.17B, Rocket Lab (RKLB) $34.01B.

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%.

Which company is more profitable?

General Dynamics (GD) has the highest net margin (General Dynamics (GD) 8.2%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -21.5%). On return on invested capital, General Dynamics (GD) leads (General Dynamics (GD) 13.6%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -6.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year General Dynamics (GD) returned the most: General Dynamics (GD) +1.8%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -16.6%. Over five years, Rocket Lab (RKLB) compounded fastest (General Dynamics (GD) +11.7%/yr, Rocket Lab (RKLB) +33.2%/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) 22.3%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) 92.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do GD and RKLB move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.23, a weak relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, GD and RKLB?

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 7. 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.