NSC vs UNP vs FIP Stock Comparison

Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific and FTAI Infrastructure Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
NSC Norfolk Southern Corp
$345.87 +9.0% 1M +22.1% 1Y
Market cap
$77.69B
P/E
28.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$12.96B
Div. yield
1.56%
Railroads Industrials
1 win
UNP Union Pacific Corp
$307.02 +10.3% 1M +39.3% 1Y
Market cap
$182.44B
P/E
23.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$26.36B
Div. yield
1.81%
Railroads Industrials
8 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Union Pacific leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Union Pacific 8, FTAI Infrastructure 3, Norfolk Southern 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionNSCUNPFIPLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $77.69B $182.44B $335.64M UNP
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 28.9x 23.9x -0.6x UNP
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 28.3x 22.1x — UNP
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.0% +7.4% +72.3% FIP
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 20.7% 28.9% -91.9% UNP
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 9.7% 15.7% -15.3% UNP
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.7x 2.1x -11.3x FIP
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 1.56% 1.81% 4.23% FIP
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +22.1% +39.3% -46.8% UNP
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +3.8%/yr +5.1%/yr — UNP
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 21.0% 22.7% 69.9% NSC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 34/100 45/100 20/100 UNP

Percentile Scorecard

NSCUNPFIP

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

AxisNSCUNPFIP
Valuation 7 #127 of 137 10 #123 of 137 1 #136 of 137
Growth 45 #69 of 124 59 #51 of 124 25 #93 of 124
Profitability 69 #39 of 122 90 #13 of 122 3 #119 of 122
Financial Health 31 #102 of 147 39 #90 of 147 1 #146 of 147
Shareholder Returns 20 #68 of 85 26 #63 of 85 71 #25 of 85
Overall 34 45 20
  • NSC ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • UNP ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • FIP ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodNSCUNPFIPSPY
1 month +9.0%+10.3%+6.0% -2.3%
3 months +2.8%+5.3%-17.2% -0.7%
6 months +11.0%+16.6%-46.4% +4.8%
Year to date +19.8%+32.7%-38.4% +10.3%
1 year +22.1%+39.3%-46.8% +10.3%
3 years +77.8%+44.7%-11.8% +73.0%
3 years, per year +21.2%+13.1%-4.1% +20.1%
5 years +20.3%+28.2%— +61.9%
5 years, per year +3.8%+5.1%— +10.1%
10 years +276.0%+246.2%— +258.6%
10 years, per year +14.2%+13.2%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureNSCUNPFIPSPY
Volatility, 1Y 21.0%22.7%69.9% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 20.4%21.9%71.4% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.190.162.00 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.051.73-0.67 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -38.0%-32.9%-77.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -2.0%-1.2%-55.9% -3.5%
52-week high $352.99$310.62$6.44 $779.14
52-week low $278.19$217.38$2.31 $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.

MultipleNSCUNPFIP
P/E now vs peer median 28.9xmedian 16.1x 23.9xmedian 16.1x -0.6xmedian 16.1x
P/S now vs peer median 6.0xmedian 0.9x 6.9xmedian 0.9x 0.5xmedian 0.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 16.8xmedian 8.1x 16.0xmedian 8.1x -12.6xmedian 8.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 47.2xmedian 11.4x 27.3xmedian 11.4x -1.1xmedian 11.4x
P/B now vs peer median 4.6xmedian 1.2x 8.3xmedian 1.2x -0.6xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 3.22median 0.75 3.38median 0.75 0.01median 0.75

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 monthsNSCUNPFIP
Revenue $12.96B $26.36B $659.21M
Operating income $4.09B $10.57B –
Net income $2.68B $7.62B -$468.91M
Free cash flow $1.65B $6.69B -$318.87M
EPS (diluted) $11.92 $12.81 $-5.13
Cash & equivalents $1.60B $2.21B $32.63M
Total debt $16.61B $30.32B $2.76B
Shares (diluted) 225.20M 594.50M 118.16M
Enterprise value $72.15B $174.69B -$15.87M

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
MetricNSCUNPFIP
P/E 28.9x 23.9x -0.6x
P/FCF 47.2x 27.3x -1.1x
P/Operating cash flow 20.5x 17.3x -5.8x
P/S 6.0x 6.9x 0.5x
P/B 4.6x 8.3x -0.6x
P/Tangible book 4.6x 8.3x -0.6x
EV/EBITDA 16.8x 16.0x -12.6x
EV/EBIT 22.7x 19.8x -7.0x
EV/Revenue 7.2x 8.0x 4.7x
EV/FCF 56.3x 31.3x -9.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 24.5x 19.9x -53.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 3.22 3.38 0.01

Growth

14 metrics
MetricNSCUNPFIP
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.0% 7.4% 72.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 1.7% 3.0% 28.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) -10.2% 6.0% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 8.2% 5.2% –
Net income growth (1Y) -9.4% 8.0% -299.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 8.7% 6.2% -40.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -9.6% 7.8% -273.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 9.0% 7.1% -41.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -11.0% 8.2% 32.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 4.6% 8.3% -138.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -21.5% 11.3% -10.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 13.0% 12.0% -22.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricNSCUNPFIP
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin 42.5% 49.7% -36.8%
Operating margin 31.5% 40.1% –
Pretax margin 26.4% 37.6% -66.7%
Net margin 20.7% 28.9% -91.9%
FCF margin 12.7% 25.4% -48.4%
Operating cash flow margin 29.2% 39.9% -8.7%
Return on equity 16.3% 35.7% –
Return on assets 5.9% 10.6% -8.2%
Return on invested capital 9.7% 15.7% -15.3%
Return on capital employed 9.8% 15.9% -10.0%
Asset turnover 0.3x 0.4x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.4x 1.4x 0.1x
Stock comp / revenue – – 3.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricNSCUNPFIP
Debt / assets 36.2% 41.8% 48.1%
Debt / equity 1.0x 1.4x -5.3x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.7x 2.1x -11.3x
Debt / FCF 10.1x 4.5x -8.7x
Liabilities / assets 63.6% 69.7% 109.0%
Equity / assets 36.4% 30.3% -9.0%
Interest coverage 5.2x 8.3x –
Current ratio 0.9x 1.2x 0.3x
Quick ratio 0.8x 0.9x 0.0x
Cash ratio 0.4x 0.6x 0.0x
Altman Z-score 2.60 4.43 -0.49

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricNSCUNPFIP
Dividend yield 1.6% 1.8% 4.2%
Net buyback yield 0.0% 0.0% –
Shareholder yield 1.6% 1.8% 4.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) 45.2% – -3.0%
Payout ratio (FCF) 73.6% – -4.4%
Dividend growth (1Y) -0.4% – 2.4%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 0.2% – 14.9%

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.

ConsensusNSCUNPFIP
Forward P/E 28.3xFY2026 22.1xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $12.23FY2026 $13.91FY2026 $-3.58FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -2.1%FY2026 +19.3%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +24.4% -0.9% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $14.12BFY2026 $28.02BFY2026 $701.40MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +15.9%FY2026 +14.3%FY2026 +39.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +2.7% +5.5% +18.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersNSCUNPFIP
Held by institutions 75.9% 89.0% 87.9%
Institutions holding 1,866 2,893 177
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.5% +2.4% +4.6%
Institutions buying 752 1,451 86
Institutions selling 632 986 47
Buyers to sellers 1.19 1.47 1.83

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.

NSCUNPFIP
NSC 1.00 0.94 0.16
UNP 0.94 1.00 0.16
FIP 0.16 0.16 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, NSC, UNP and FIP?

Union Pacific (UNP) is the largest by market capitalisation: Norfolk Southern (NSC) $77.69B, Union Pacific (UNP) $182.44B, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) $335.64M.

Which stock is cheaper, NSC, UNP and FIP?

Union Pacific (UNP) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Norfolk Southern (NSC) 28.9x, Union Pacific (UNP) 23.9x, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -0.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Union Pacific (UNP) is cheapest (Norfolk Southern (NSC) 28.3x, Union Pacific (UNP) 22.1x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Norfolk Southern (NSC) +6.0%, Union Pacific (UNP) +7.4%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) +72.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Union Pacific (UNP) has the highest net margin (Norfolk Southern (NSC) 20.7%, Union Pacific (UNP) 28.9%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -91.9%). On return on invested capital, Union Pacific (UNP) leads (Norfolk Southern (NSC) 9.7%, Union Pacific (UNP) 15.7%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -15.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Union Pacific (UNP) returned the most: Norfolk Southern (NSC) +22.1%, Union Pacific (UNP) +39.3%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -46.8%. Over five years, Union Pacific (UNP) compounded fastest (Norfolk Southern (NSC) +3.8%/yr, Union Pacific (UNP) +5.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) has the highest dividend yield: Norfolk Southern (NSC) 1.56%, Union Pacific (UNP) 1.81%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) 4.23%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Norfolk Southern (NSC) has been the steadiest (Norfolk Southern (NSC) 21.0%, Union Pacific (UNP) 22.7%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) 69.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, NSC, UNP and FIP?

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