LUV vs CPA vs AERO Stock Comparison

Southwest Airlines, Copa Holdings and Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
1 more company in this comparison (DAL) Create a free account to keep reading and compare up to 10 companies.
LUV Southwest Airlines Co
$43.70 +3.9% 1M +42.5% 1Y
Market cap
$20.73B
P/E
19.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$31.55B
Div. yield
–
Airlines Industrials
2 wins
CPA Copa Holdings, S.A.
$131.28 -1.3% 1M +6.0% 1Y
Market cap
$5.32B
P/E
8.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.99B
Div. yield
–
Airlines Industrials
8 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Copa Holdings leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Copa Holdings 8, Southwest Airlines 2, Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionLUVCPAAEROLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $20.73B $5.32B $2.17B LUV
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 19.7x 8.5x 13.6x CPA
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 16.8x 9.3x 43.6x CPA
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +14.5% +14.8% +8.8% CPA
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 3.3% 15.7% 3.6% CPA
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 8.2% 15.3% — CPA
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.8x 0.9x -0.4x AERO
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +42.5% +6.0% — LUV
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -1.6%/yr +12.2%/yr — CPA
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 43.3% 42.8% 54.2% CPA
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 58/100 65/100 58/100 CPA

Percentile Scorecard

LUVCPAAERO

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

AxisLUVCPAAERO
Valuation 49 #70 of 136 61 #54 of 136 99 #3 of 136
Growth 88 #15 of 121 63 #45 of 121 16 #102 of 121
Profitability 44 #63 of 112 78 #25 of 112 55 #51 of 112
Financial Health 32 #96 of 140 48 #73 of 140 63 #52 of 140
Shareholder Returns 79 #18 of 80 73 #22 of 80 –
Overall 58 65 58
  • LUV ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • CPA ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • AERO ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodLUVCPAAEROSPY
1 month +3.9%-1.3%-4.1% +0.7%
3 months -4.2%-7.8%-1.8% +3.7%
6 months +15.2%+13.5%+0.4% +7.1%
Year to date +5.7%+8.8%-30.6% +12.8%
1 year +42.5%+6.0%— +11.9%
3 years +94.1%+61.2%— +85.2%
3 years, per year +24.8%+17.3%— +22.8%
5 years -7.6%+77.5%— +67.6%
5 years, per year -1.6%+12.2%— +10.9%
10 years +11.5%+41.8%— +262.0%
10 years, per year +1.1%+3.6%— +13.7%

Risk

MeasureLUVCPAAEROSPY
Volatility, 1Y 43.3%42.8%54.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 38.2%40.4%56.9% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.611.821.75 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.980.14— 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -57.4%-42.5%-46.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -20.3%-16.5%-33.4% -1.2%
52-week high $54.80$157.19$22.91 $779.14
52-week low $29.67$107.81$12.36 $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.

MultipleLUVCPAAERO
P/E now vs peer median 20.3xmedian 16.5x 8.6xmedian 16.5x 13.9xmedian 16.5x
P/S now vs peer median 0.7xmedian 0.9x 1.4xmedian 0.9x 0.5xmedian 0.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 8.0xmedian 8.8x 5.5xmedian 8.8x 1.4xmedian 8.8x
P/FCF now vs peer median -47.7xmedian 11.9x —median 11.9x 3.5xmedian 11.9x
P/B now vs peer median 2.9xmedian 1.2x 1.9xmedian 1.2x -3.7xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 0.51median 0.84 1.46median 0.84 —median 0.84

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 monthsLUVCPAAERO
Revenue $31.55B $3.99B $4.40B
Operating income $1.39B $772.19M $635.00M
Net income $1.05B $626.62M $120.00M
Free cash flow -$449.00M – $630.00M
EPS (diluted) $2.13 $15.19 $1.09
Cash & equivalents $3.62B $266.83M $965.00M
Total debt $5.89B $7.93B $475.00M
Shares (diluted) 494.00M 41.26M 145.90M
Enterprise value $6.75B $395.49M -$1.90B

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
MetricLUVCPAAERO
P/E 20.3x 8.6x 13.9x
P/FCF -47.7x – 3.5x
P/Operating cash flow 7.8x – 3.5x
P/S 0.7x 1.4x 0.5x
P/B 2.9x 1.9x -3.7x
P/Tangible book 2.9x 2.0x -3.7x
EV/EBITDA 8.0x 5.5x 1.4x
EV/EBIT 17.1x 8.3x 2.7x
EV/Revenue 0.7x 1.6x 0.4x
EV/FCF -52.7x – 2.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.6x – 2.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.51 1.46 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricLUVCPAAERO
Revenue growth (1Y) 14.5% 14.8% 8.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.4% 5.7% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) 339.7% -0.3% -2.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 78.6% 0.9% –
Net income growth (1Y) 177.8% -1.7% -38.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 28.4% 22.2% –
EPS growth (1Y) 195.8% -0.5% -43.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 40.0% 5.9% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 36.2% – –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -6.0% – –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -35.2% – –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 20.2% – –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricLUVCPAAERO
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin 9.4% 29.4% 27.6%
Operating margin 4.4% 19.4% 14.4%
Pretax margin 4.3% 18.0% 5.5%
Net margin 3.3% 15.7% 3.6%
FCF margin -1.4% – 14.3%
Operating cash flow margin 8.7% – 14.3%
Return on equity 14.6% 21.8% –
Return on assets 3.5% 8.9% 2.9%
Return on invested capital 8.2% 15.3% –
Return on capital employed 8.3% 14.4% 10.0%
Asset turnover 1.0x 0.6x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.6x – 5.3x
Stock comp / revenue – – –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricLUVCPAAERO
Debt / assets 19.3% 31.8% 6.4%
Debt / equity 0.8x 0.8x -0.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.8x 0.9x -0.4x
Debt / FCF -13.1x – 0.8x
Liabilities / assets 76.0% 59.7% 108.0%
Equity / assets 24.0% 40.3% -8.0%
Interest coverage 5.9x 7.3x 5.8x
Current ratio 0.5x 1.1x 2.0x
Quick ratio 0.4x 0.9x 1.7x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.8x 0.9x
Altman Z-score 2.22 2.22 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricLUVCPAAERO
Dividend yield 1.6% 5.1% –
Net buyback yield 5.8% – –
Shareholder yield 7.5% 5.1% 0.0%
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.

ConsensusLUVCPAAERO
Forward P/E 16.8xFY2026 9.3xFY2026 43.6xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.60FY2026 $14.13FY2026 $0.35FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +179.6%FY2026 -13.2%FY2026 -85.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +58.8% +41.4% +408.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $31.34BFY2026 $4.72BFY2026 $5.78BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +11.7%FY2026 +30.3%FY2026 +7.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +16.7% -4.7% +15.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersLUVCPAAERO
Held by institutions 92.9% 62.4% 65.1%
Institutions holding 931 321 75
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.4% -4.3% -1.5%
Institutions buying 477 187 32
Institutions selling 280 98 17
Buyers to sellers 1.70 1.91 1.88

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.

LUVCPAAERO
LUV 1.00 0.55 0.38
CPA 0.55 1.00 0.47
AERO 0.38 0.47 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, LUV, CPA and AERO?

Southwest Airlines (LUV) is the largest by market capitalisation: Southwest Airlines (LUV) $20.73B, Copa Holdings (CPA) $5.32B, Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V (AERO) $2.17B.

Which stock is cheaper, LUV, CPA and AERO?

Copa Holdings (CPA) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Southwest Airlines (LUV) 19.7x, Copa Holdings (CPA) 8.5x, Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V (AERO) 13.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Copa Holdings (CPA) is cheapest (Southwest Airlines (LUV) 16.8x, Copa Holdings (CPA) 9.3x, Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V (AERO) 43.6x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Copa Holdings (CPA) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Southwest Airlines (LUV) +14.5%, Copa Holdings (CPA) +14.8%, Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V (AERO) +8.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Copa Holdings (CPA) has the highest net margin (Southwest Airlines (LUV) 3.3%, Copa Holdings (CPA) 15.7%, Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V (AERO) 3.6%). On return on invested capital, Copa Holdings (CPA) leads (Southwest Airlines (LUV) 8.2%, Copa Holdings (CPA) 15.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Southwest Airlines (LUV) returned the most: Southwest Airlines (LUV) +42.5%, Copa Holdings (CPA) +6.0%. Over five years, Copa Holdings (CPA) compounded fastest (Southwest Airlines (LUV) -1.6%/yr, Copa Holdings (CPA) +12.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Copa Holdings (CPA) has been the steadiest (Southwest Airlines (LUV) 43.3%, Copa Holdings (CPA) 42.8%, Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V (AERO) 54.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, LUV, CPA and AERO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Copa Holdings (CPA) leads on 8. 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.