NOA vs FER vs J Stock Comparison

North American Construction, Ferrovial and Jacobs Solutions Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
FER Ferrovial N.V.
$54.02 -3.2% 1M -16.7% 1Y
Market cap
$38.93B
P/E
38.7x
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
1.37%
Engineering and Construction Industrials
3 wins
J Jacobs Solutions Inc.
$148.28 +7.2% 1M -7.9% 1Y
Market cap
$17.37B
P/E
51.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$14.22B
Div. yield
0.94%
Engineering and Construction Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

North American Construction leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (North American Construction 6, Ferrovial 3, Jacobs Solutions 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionNOAFERJLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $354.50M $38.93B $17.37B FER
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 15.0x 38.7x 51.6x NOA
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 10.3x 50.5x 21.9x NOA
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +7.5% — +20.1% J
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.2% — 2.4% J
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 6.8% — 5.8% NOA
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.6x — 2.7x NOA
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 3.90% 1.37% 0.94% NOA
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -19.5% -16.7% -7.9% J
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -7.0%/yr +12.9%/yr +5.2%/yr FER
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 48.1% 26.3% 33.0% FER
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 55/100 47/100 45/100 NOA

Percentile Scorecard

NOAFERJ

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

AxisNOAFERJ
Valuation 88 #7 of 52 35 #34 of 52 37 #33 of 52
Growth 14 #32 of 37 – 31 #26 of 37
Profitability 61 #15 of 37 – 53 #18 of 37
Financial Health 16 #48 of 57 34 #38 of 57 45 #32 of 57
Shareholder Returns 96 #2 of 27 73 #8 of 27 62 #11 of 27
Overall 55 47 45
  • NOA ranked among 57 companies in Construction Services
  • FER ranked among 57 companies in Construction Services
  • J ranked among 57 companies in Construction Services

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodNOAFERJSPY
1 month -0.1%-3.2%+7.2% -0.2%
3 months -10.3%-12.5%+5.4% +3.9%
6 months -15.3%-20.4%+17.3% +8.2%
Year to date -14.4%-16.4%+11.9% +12.9%
1 year -19.5%-16.7%-7.9% +12.3%
3 years -40.8%+66.2%+36.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year -16.1%+18.5%+11.0% +23.3%
5 years -30.4%+83.7%+28.7% +67.9%
5 years, per year -7.0%+12.9%+5.2% +10.9%
10 years +310.0%+155.1%+253.7% +261.1%
10 years, per year +15.2%+9.8%+13.5% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureNOAFERJSPY
Volatility, 1Y 48.1%26.3%33.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 56.1%24.6%36.0% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.211.040.77 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.41-0.63-0.24 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -55.8%-34.3%-34.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -27.1%-27.4%-7.9% -1.2%
52-week high $16.88$74.38$161.00 $779.14
52-week low $11.22$48.86$107.27 $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.

MultipleNOAFERJ
P/E now vs peer median 15.0xmedian 26.7x 38.7xmedian 26.7x 51.6xmedian 26.7x
P/S now vs peer median 0.3xmedian 0.8x 3.6xmedian 0.8x 1.2xmedian 0.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 4.1xmedian 13.1x —median 13.1x 22.4xmedian 13.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median -1.6xmedian 23.0x 19.8xmedian 23.0x 26.9xmedian 23.0x
P/B now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 2.4x 5.6xmedian 2.4x 5.3xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median -0.59median 0.57 —median 0.57 -2.43median 0.57

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 monthsNOAFERJ
Revenue $1.06B – $14.22B
Gross profit $137.57M – $3.14B
Operating income $76.84M – $649.64M
Net income $23.49M – $301.35M
Free cash flow -$218.42M – $644.54M
EPS (diluted) $0.73 – $2.85
Cash & equivalents $118.01M $5.02B $1.17B
Total debt $727.57M $12.25B $3.58B
Shares (diluted) 32.27M 718.72M 118.90M
Enterprise value $3.38M $19.24B $12.02B

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
MetricNOAFERJ
P/E 15.0x 38.7x 51.6x
P/FCF -1.6x 19.8x 26.9x
P/Operating cash flow – – 23.6x
P/S 0.3x 3.6x 1.2x
P/B 1.0x 5.6x 5.3x
P/Tangible book 1.1x 5.7x 6.5x
EV/EBITDA 4.1x – 22.4x
EV/EBIT 12.5x – 30.4x
EV/Revenue 0.9x – 1.4x
EV/FCF -4.4x – 30.7x
EV/Operating cash flow – – 26.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.59 – -2.43

Growth

14 metrics
MetricNOAFERJ
Revenue growth (1Y) 7.5% – 20.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 18.0% – 28.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -2.3% – 6.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 12.5% – 5.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) -22.0% – -23.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 6.6% – 14.0%
Net income growth (1Y) -7.1% – -40.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -26.9% – -26.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -6.7% – -30.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -25.5% – -21.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) – – 47.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – – -10.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -9.6% – 56.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -50.4% – -10.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricNOAFERJ
Gross margin 13.0% – 22.1%
EBITDA margin 22.4% – 6.2%
Operating margin 7.3% – 4.6%
Pretax margin 19.2% – 3.6%
Net margin 2.2% – 2.4%
FCF margin -20.6% – 4.5%
Operating cash flow margin – – 5.2%
Return on equity 16.7% – 9.2%
Return on assets 3.9% – 2.5%
Return on invested capital 6.8% – 5.8%
Return on capital employed – – 8.2%
Asset turnover 0.7x – 1.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) – – 2.4x
Stock comp / revenue 0.4% – 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricNOAFERJ
Debt / assets 46.0% 38.0% 30.5%
Debt / equity 2.2x 1.8x 1.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.6x – 2.7x
Debt / FCF -3.3x – 5.6x
Liabilities / assets 78.6% 78.5% 72.2%
Equity / assets 21.4% 21.5% 27.8%
Interest coverage – – 3.9x
Current ratio – 1.1x 1.3x
Quick ratio – 1.1x 1.6x
Cash ratio – 0.7x 0.3x
Altman Z-score – – 2.85

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricNOAFERJ
Dividend yield 3.9% 1.4% 0.9%
Net buyback yield 7.8% – 3.9%
Shareholder yield 11.7% 1.4% 4.9%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 53.6%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 25.1%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 6.9%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 8.9%

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.

ConsensusNOAFERJ
Forward P/E 10.3xFY2026 50.5xFY2026 21.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $1.19FY2026 $1.07FY2026 $6.78FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +43.4%FY2026 -20.7%FY2026 +10.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +22.7% +12.1% +27.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.16BFY2026 $11.77BFY2026 $9.78BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +23.6%FY2026 +4.1%FY2026 -18.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.6% -5.3% -0.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersNOAFERJ
Held by institutions 57.1% 33.2% 92.2%
Institutions holding 72 337 871
Change in shares held, QoQ -3.6% +17.5% +3.0%
Institutions buying 45 208 375
Institutions selling 18 103 360
Buyers to sellers 2.50 2.02 1.04

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.

NOAFERJ
NOA 1.00 0.17 0.19
FER 0.17 1.00 0.20
J 0.19 0.20 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, NOA, FER and J?

Ferrovial (FER) is the largest by market capitalisation: North American Construction (NOA) $354.50M, Ferrovial (FER) $38.93B, Jacobs Solutions (J) $17.37B.

Which stock is cheaper, NOA, FER and J?

North American Construction (NOA) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (North American Construction (NOA) 15.0x, Ferrovial (FER) 38.7x, Jacobs Solutions (J) 51.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, North American Construction (NOA) is cheapest (North American Construction (NOA) 10.3x, Ferrovial (FER) 50.5x, Jacobs Solutions (J) 21.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Jacobs Solutions (J) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: North American Construction (NOA) +7.5%, Jacobs Solutions (J) +20.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Jacobs Solutions (J) has the highest net margin (North American Construction (NOA) 2.2%, Jacobs Solutions (J) 2.4%). On return on invested capital, North American Construction (NOA) leads (North American Construction (NOA) 6.8%, Jacobs Solutions (J) 5.8%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Jacobs Solutions (J) returned the most: North American Construction (NOA) -19.5%, Ferrovial (FER) -16.7%, Jacobs Solutions (J) -7.9%. Over five years, Ferrovial (FER) compounded fastest (North American Construction (NOA) -7.0%/yr, Ferrovial (FER) +12.9%/yr, Jacobs Solutions (J) +5.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

North American Construction (NOA) has the highest dividend yield: North American Construction (NOA) 3.90%, Ferrovial (FER) 1.37%, Jacobs Solutions (J) 0.94%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ferrovial (FER) has been the steadiest (North American Construction (NOA) 48.1%, Ferrovial (FER) 26.3%, Jacobs Solutions (J) 33.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, NOA, FER and J?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, North American Construction (NOA) 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.