NOC vs RDW vs RKLB Stock Comparison

Northrop Grumman, Redwire and Rocket Lab Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
RDW Redwire Corp
$8.36 -25.8% 1M +8.0% 1Y
Market cap
$1.83B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$426.27M
Div. yield
–
Space Industrials
2 wins
RKLB Rocket Lab Corp
$52.60 -25.2% 1M -17.3% 1Y
Market cap
$33.90B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$769.15M
Div. yield
–
Space Industrials
1 win

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

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

QuestionNOCRDWRKLBLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $80.39B $1.83B $33.90B NOC
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 17.8x -7.1x -204.9x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 18.1x — — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.5% +63.1% +52.5% RDW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 10.4% -60.7% -21.5% NOC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 12.2% -15.1% -6.7% NOC
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.7x 3.1x 14.4x NOC
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.02% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -8.9% +8.0% -17.3% RDW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +6.3%/yr -7.2%/yr +32.3%/yr RKLB
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 28.5% 112.1% 92.6% NOC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 58/100 39/100 42/100 NOC

Percentile Scorecard

NOCRDWRKLB

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

AxisNOCRDWRKLB
Valuation 73 #28 of 100 34 #66 of 100 18 #82 of 100
Growth 41 #58 of 97 42 #57 of 97 50 #49 of 97
Profitability 76 #24 of 96 25 #72 of 96 31 #67 of 96
Financial Health 42 #62 of 106 83 #19 of 106 88 #14 of 106
Shareholder Returns 61 #26 of 65 13 #57 of 65 22 #51 of 65
Overall 58 39 42
  • NOC ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • RDW 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

PeriodNOCRDWRKLBSPY
1 month +7.2%-25.8%-25.2% -1.0%
3 months +1.7%-3.8%-17.7% +2.9%
6 months -4.1%-13.6%-34.0% +6.4%
Year to date -3.3%+10.0%-24.6% +11.4%
1 year -8.9%+8.0%-17.3% +13.1%
3 years +15.3%+209.6%+1,170.5% +79.4%
3 years, per year +4.9%+45.8%+133.5% +21.5%
5 years +35.8%-31.3%+304.6% +67.7%
5 years, per year +6.3%-7.2%+32.3% +10.9%
10 years +155.5%—— +255.2%
10 years, per year +9.8%—— +13.5%

Risk

MeasureNOCRDWRKLBSPY
Volatility, 1Y 28.5%112.1%92.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 28.2%102.6%90.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.024.033.87 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.310.07-0.19 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -38.4%-87.3%-78.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -28.2%-67.7%-65.0% -2.5%
52-week high $768.02$25.90$150.23 $779.14
52-week low $473.40$5.06$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.

MultipleNOCRDWRKLB
P/E now vs peer median 17.3xmedian 26.2x -7.1xmedian 26.2x -200.2xmedian 26.2x
P/S now vs peer median 1.8xmedian 2.9x 4.9xmedian 2.9x 40.9xmedian 2.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 14.5xmedian 14.7x -9.5xmedian 14.7x -182.9xmedian 14.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 20.5xmedian 24.9x -21.2xmedian 24.9x -84.8xmedian 24.9x
P/B now vs peer median 4.2xmedian 2.4x 1.3xmedian 2.4x 9.0xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 17.02median 0.92 0.89median 0.92 -24.20median 0.92

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 monthsNOCRDWRKLB
Revenue $43.59B $426.27M $769.15M
Gross profit $8.73B $85.66M $286.62M
Operating income $4.63B -$215.26M -$223.49M
Net income $4.52B -$244.10M -$165.46M
Free cash flow $3.83B -$98.20M -$371.14M
R&D – $42.36M $312.42M
EPS (diluted) $31.74 $-1.17 $-0.26
Cash & equivalents $3.74B $557.72M $2.13B
Total debt $58.43B $48.06M $1.72M
Shares (diluted) 142.40M 220.47M 629.68M
Enterprise value $67.84B $978.54M $28.22B

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
MetricNOCRDWRKLB
P/E 17.3x -7.1x -200.2x
P/FCF 20.5x -21.2x -84.8x
P/Operating cash flow 14.9x -27.3x -141.4x
P/S 1.8x 4.9x 40.9x
P/B 4.2x 1.3x 9.0x
P/Tangible book 4.2x 1.6x 9.9x
EV/EBITDA 14.5x -9.5x -182.9x
EV/EBIT 19.3x -7.3x -130.5x
EV/Revenue 2.0x 3.7x 37.9x
EV/FCF 23.3x -16.0x -78.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 16.9x -20.7x -131.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 17.02 0.89 -24.20

Growth

14 metrics
MetricNOCRDWRKLB
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.5% 63.1% 52.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.1% 26.9% 49.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 9.8% 1,193% 95.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 3.4% 22.4% 109.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) 6.8% -56.3% -0.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 6.4% -72.2% -11.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 12.5% -29.8% 28.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -1.1% -70.8% -0.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 13.3% 57.9% 41.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 1.0% -8.0% 8.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 53.2% 46.9% -100.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 12.5% -40.8% -44.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 108.8% 35.4% -81.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 22.3% -46.5% -45.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricNOCRDWRKLB
Gross margin 20.0% 20.1% 37.3%
EBITDA margin 14.1% -38.9% -20.7%
Operating margin 10.6% -50.5% -29.1%
Pretax margin 12.0% -54.9% -24.9%
Net margin 10.4% -60.7% -21.5%
FCF margin 8.8% -23.0% -48.3%
Operating cash flow margin 12.1% -17.9% -28.9%
Return on equity 24.7% -18.0% -5.7%
Return on assets 8.8% -14.1% -4.7%
Return on invested capital 12.2% -15.1% -6.7%
Return on capital employed 12.2% -14.0% -7.5%
Asset turnover 0.8x 0.2x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.2x 0.3x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% 17.4% 10.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricNOCRDWRKLB
Debt / assets 27.5% 2.5% 0.0%
Debt / equity 0.8x 0.0x 0.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.7x 3.1x 14.4x
Debt / FCF 3.8x -0.5x 0.0x
Liabilities / assets 64.4% 16.1% 16.6%
Equity / assets 35.6% 83.9% 83.4%
Interest coverage 7.1x – -13.9x
Current ratio 1.2x 3.9x 5.5x
Quick ratio 1.0x 3.4x 4.8x
Cash ratio 0.3x 2.9x 4.4x
Altman Z-score 3.08 3.66 27.47

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricNOCRDWRKLB
Dividend yield 1.7% – –
Net buyback yield 0.7% -36.4% -7.3%
Shareholder yield 2.4% -36.4% -7.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) 30.2% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 35.6% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) 8.0% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 7.4% – –

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.

ConsensusNOCRDWRKLB
Forward P/E 18.1xFY2026 – –
EPS, next fiscal year $30.52FY2026 $-0.77FY2026 $-0.28FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +15.9%FY2026 – –
EPS growth, the year after +5.9% – –
Revenue, next fiscal year $42.94BFY2026 $463.08MFY2026 $917.64MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +2.4%FY2026 +38.1%FY2026 +52.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +3.7% +25.7% +52.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersNOCRDWRKLB
Held by institutions 83.4% 64.7% 51.2%
Institutions holding 1,809 324 1,128
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.3% +15.8% +10.9%
Institutions buying 840 253 810
Institutions selling 639 57 238
Buyers to sellers 1.31 4.44 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.

NOCRDWRKLB
NOC 1.00 0.21 0.18
RDW 0.21 1.00 0.76
RKLB 0.18 0.76 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, NOC, RDW and RKLB?

Northrop Grumman (NOC) is the largest by market capitalisation: Northrop Grumman (NOC) $80.39B, Redwire (RDW) $1.83B, Rocket Lab (RKLB) $33.90B.

Which company is growing faster?

Redwire (RDW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Northrop Grumman (NOC) +6.5%, Redwire (RDW) +63.1%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) +52.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Northrop Grumman (NOC) has the highest net margin (Northrop Grumman (NOC) 10.4%, Redwire (RDW) -60.7%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -21.5%). On return on invested capital, Northrop Grumman (NOC) leads (Northrop Grumman (NOC) 12.2%, Redwire (RDW) -15.1%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -6.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Redwire (RDW) returned the most: Northrop Grumman (NOC) -8.9%, Redwire (RDW) +8.0%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) -17.3%. Over five years, Rocket Lab (RKLB) compounded fastest (Northrop Grumman (NOC) +6.3%/yr, Redwire (RDW) -7.2%/yr, Rocket Lab (RKLB) +32.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Northrop Grumman (NOC) 0.02%, Redwire (RDW) 0.00%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) 0.00%. Redwire (RDW) and Rocket Lab (RKLB) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Northrop Grumman (NOC) has been the steadiest (Northrop Grumman (NOC) 28.5%, Redwire (RDW) 112.1%, Rocket Lab (RKLB) 92.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, NOC, RDW 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, Northrop Grumman (NOC) 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.