HII vs ESLT vs LHX Stock Comparison

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Elbit Systems and L3Harris Technologies Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ESLT Elbit Systems Ltd
$807.41 +14.8% 1M +68.9% 1Y
Market cap
$35.51B
P/E
55.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.55B
Div. yield
0.00%
Defense Industrials
6 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Elbit Systems leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Elbit Systems 6, L3Harris Technologies 3, Huntington Ingalls Industries 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionHIIESLTLHXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $12.57B $35.51B $51.74B LHX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 17.1x 55.8x 23.9x HII
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 16.5x 58.0x 24.4x HII
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +12.6% +13.7% — ESLT
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.4% 7.4% — ESLT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 7.7% 17.8% — ESLT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.1x -0.9x — ESLT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.02% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +6.1% +68.9% -2.9% ESLT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +9.3%/yr +38.5%/yr +3.9%/yr ESLT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.5% 44.8% 29.4% LHX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 52/100 59/100 68/100 LHX

Percentile Scorecard

HIIESLTLHX

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

AxisHIIESLTLHX
Valuation 88 #13 of 100 43 #57 of 100 81 #20 of 100
Growth 35 #63 of 96 86 #14 of 96 –
Profitability 62 #37 of 95 71 #28 of 95 –
Financial Health 34 #70 of 105 59 #44 of 105 30 #74 of 105
Shareholder Returns 42 #38 of 65 34 #43 of 65 94 #5 of 65
Overall 52 59 68
  • HII ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • ESLT ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • LHX 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

PeriodHIIESLTLHXSPY
1 month +21.9%+14.8%+17.9% +0.7%
3 months -1.1%+2.7%+2.5% +3.7%
6 months -13.1%-3.8%-13.1% +7.1%
Year to date -6.9%+39.8%-5.1% +12.8%
1 year +6.1%+68.9%-2.9% +11.9%
3 years +45.7%+333.8%+59.8% +85.2%
3 years, per year +13.4%+63.1%+16.9% +22.8%
5 years +56.2%+408.4%+20.9% +67.6%
5 years, per year +9.3%+38.5%+3.9% +10.9%
10 years +97.8%+722.8%+211.7% +262.0%
10 years, per year +7.1%+23.5%+12.0% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureHIIESLTLHXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.5%44.8%29.4% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 37.9%39.6%29.1% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.680.700.18 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.151.54-0.10 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -46.1%-35.5%-40.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -30.2%-20.4%-26.4% -1.2%
52-week high $453.73$1,014.33$378.48 $779.14
52-week low $257.01$454.95$233.68 $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.

MultipleHIIESLTLHX
P/E now vs peer median 17.1xmedian 26.9x 58.0xmedian 26.9x 23.9xmedian 26.9x
P/S now vs peer median 0.9xmedian 3.0x 4.4xmedian 3.0x 1.1xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.4xmedian 15.0x 37.8xmedian 15.0x —median 15.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 38.1xmedian 27.2x 37.8xmedian 27.2x 15.8xmedian 27.2x
P/B now vs peer median 2.3xmedian 2.5x 8.5xmedian 2.5x 2.6xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median 1.45median 0.93 1.84median 0.93 —median 0.93

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 monthsHIIESLTLHX
Revenue $13.53B $8.55B –
Gross profit $5.59B $2.14B –
Operating income $783.00M $787.82M –
Net income $733.00M $636.61M –
Free cash flow $327.00M $992.19M –
R&D – $582.72M –
EPS (diluted) $18.51 $13.56 –
Cash & equivalents $387.00M $255.34M $2.47B
Total debt $2.70B $92.13M –
Shares (diluted) 39.60M 46.92M 187.30M
Enterprise value $11.18B $32.07B $51.74B

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
MetricHIIESLTLHX
P/E 17.1x 58.0x 23.9x
P/FCF 38.1x 37.8x 15.8x
P/Operating cash flow 16.7x 37.8x –
P/S 0.9x 4.4x 1.1x
P/B 2.3x 8.5x 2.6x
P/Tangible book 2.6x 8.5x 3.7x
EV/EBITDA 13.4x 37.8x –
EV/EBIT 18.9x 46.5x –
EV/Revenue 1.1x 4.3x –
EV/FCF 45.2x 36.9x –
EV/Operating cash flow 19.7x 36.9x –
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.45 1.84 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricHIIESLTLHX
Revenue growth (1Y) 12.6% 13.7% –
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 6.9% 14.4% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) 6.0% 18.5% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 7.4% 14.1% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 31.6% 37.1% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 10.9% 26.5% –
Net income growth (1Y) 28.8% 58.0% –
Net income CAGR (3Y) 11.4% 33.7% –
EPS growth (1Y) 28.2% 50.8% –
EPS CAGR (3Y) 11.8% 31.5% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -20.1% 22.1% –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -9.5% 82.7% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -41.1% 105.8% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -23.8% 175.7% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricHIIESLTLHX
Gross margin 41.3% 25.0% –
EBITDA margin 8.1% 11.3% –
Operating margin 5.8% 9.2% –
Pretax margin 6.8% 8.1% –
Net margin 5.4% 7.4% –
FCF margin 2.4% 11.6% –
Operating cash flow margin 5.5% 11.6% –
Return on equity 13.6% 14.7% –
Return on assets 5.7% 4.7% –
Return on invested capital 7.7% 17.8% –
Return on capital employed 7.8% 11.0% –
Asset turnover 1.1x 0.6x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.0x 1.6x –
Stock comp / revenue 0.4% 0.3% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricHIIESLTLHX
Debt / assets 20.8% 0.7% –
Debt / equity 0.5x 0.0x –
Net debt / EBITDA 2.1x -0.9x –
Debt / FCF 8.3x 0.1x –
Liabilities / assets 57.7% 68.2% 51.5%
Equity / assets 42.3% 31.8% 46.2%
Interest coverage 7.8x – –
Current ratio 1.3x 1.4x 1.2x
Quick ratio 0.3x 0.8x –
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.2x –
Altman Z-score 2.94 – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricHIIESLTLHX
Dividend yield 1.7% 0.5% 1.8%
Net buyback yield – 0.0% –
Shareholder yield 1.7% 0.5% 1.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) 29.6% 22.7% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 66.4% 14.5% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 2.8% -54.3% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 2.9% -17.4% –

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.

ConsensusHIIESLTLHX
Forward P/E 16.5xFY2026 58.0xFY2026 24.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $19.23FY2026 $13.93FY2026 $11.44FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +25.0%FY2026 +22.3%FY2026 +6.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +16.1% +21.8% +10.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $13.12BFY2026 $8.84BFY2026 $24.16BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +5.2%FY2026 +11.3%FY2026 +10.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +1.3% +21.1% +0.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersHIIESLTLHX
Held by institutions 88.5% 19.9% 87.5%
Institutions holding 807 385 1,692
Change in shares held, QoQ -1.2% -7.1% -0.5%
Institutions buying 354 202 848
Institutions selling 301 107 570
Buyers to sellers 1.18 1.89 1.49

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.

HIIESLTLHX
HII 1.00 0.41 0.51
ESLT 0.41 1.00 0.42
LHX 0.51 0.42 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, HII, ESLT and LHX?

L3Harris Technologies (LHX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) $12.57B, Elbit Systems (ESLT) $35.51B, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) $51.74B.

Which stock is cheaper, HII, ESLT and LHX?

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) 17.1x, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 55.8x, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 23.9x). On next year's consensus earnings, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) is cheapest (Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) 16.5x, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 58.0x, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 24.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Elbit Systems (ESLT) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) +12.6%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) +13.7%.

Which company is more profitable?

Elbit Systems (ESLT) has the highest net margin (Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) 5.4%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 7.4%). On return on invested capital, Elbit Systems (ESLT) leads (Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) 7.7%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 17.8%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Elbit Systems (ESLT) returned the most: Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) +6.1%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) +68.9%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) -2.9%. Over five years, Elbit Systems (ESLT) compounded fastest (Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) +9.3%/yr, Elbit Systems (ESLT) +38.5%/yr, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) +3.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) 0.02%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 0.00%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 0.00%. Elbit Systems (ESLT) and L3Harris Technologies (LHX) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) has been the steadiest (Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) 40.5%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 44.8%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 29.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, HII, ESLT and LHX?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 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.