RKLB vs GD vs RDW Stock Comparison

Rocket Lab, General Dynamics and Redwire Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
RKLB Rocket Lab Corp
$58.31 -21.1% 1M -11.1% 1Y
Market cap
$36.24B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$769.15M
Div. yield
–
Space Industrials
1 win
GD General Dynamics Corp
$354.89 +5.4% 1M +0.3% 1Y
Market cap
$95.79B
P/E
21.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$54.86B
Div. yield
–
Defense Industrials
6 wins
RDW Redwire Corp
$8.90 -23.3% 1M +8.0% 1Y
Market cap
$1.94B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$426.27M
Div. yield
–
Space Industrials
2 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

General Dynamics leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (General Dynamics 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.

QuestionRKLBGDRDWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $36.24B $95.79B $1.94B GD
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -219.0x 21.3x -7.5x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 20.2x — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +52.5% +9.1% +63.1% RDW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -21.5% 8.2% -60.7% GD
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -6.7% 13.6% -15.1% GD
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 14.4x 0.5x 3.1x GD
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -11.1% +0.3% +8.0% RDW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +34.3%/yr +11.9%/yr -6.5%/yr RKLB
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 93.0% 22.2% 112.2% GD
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 43/100 71/100 39/100 GD

Percentile Scorecard

RKLBGDRDW

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

AxisRKLBGDRDW
Valuation 19 #81 of 100 87 #14 of 100 33 #67 of 100
Growth 51 #48 of 97 43 #56 of 97 42 #57 of 97
Profitability 31 #67 of 96 79 #21 of 96 25 #72 of 96
Financial Health 89 #13 of 105 63 #40 of 105 83 #19 of 105
Shareholder Returns 23 #50 of 65 86 #10 of 65 13 #57 of 65
Overall 43 71 39
  • RKLB ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • GD ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • RDW 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

PeriodRKLBGDRDWSPY
1 month -21.1%+5.4%-23.3% -0.2%
3 months -8.7%-9.8%+4.0% +3.9%
6 months -25.8%+13.1%-1.5% +8.2%
Year to date -16.4%+5.4%+17.1% +12.9%
1 year -11.1%+0.3%+8.0% +12.3%
3 years +1,301.7%+49.0%+239.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year +141.3%+14.2%+50.4% +23.3%
5 years +336.1%+75.2%-28.5% +67.9%
5 years, per year +34.3%+11.9%-6.5% +10.9%
10 years —+136.4%— +261.1%
10 years, per year —+9.0%— +13.7%

Risk

MeasureRKLBGDRDWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 93.0%22.2%112.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 90.2%20.9%102.3% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 3.910.334.05 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.120.010.07 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -78.3%-23.0%-87.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -61.2%-10.4%-65.6% -1.2%
52-week high $150.23$395.97$25.90 $779.14
52-week low $39.48$312.53$5.06 $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.

MultipleRKLBGDRDW
P/E now vs peer median -221.9xmedian 26.5x 21.4xmedian 26.5x -7.6xmedian 26.5x
P/S now vs peer median 45.3xmedian 3.0x 1.8xmedian 3.0x 5.2xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median -204.3xmedian 14.6x 15.1xmedian 14.6x -10.3xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median -94.0xmedian 26.4x 14.9xmedian 26.4x -22.6xmedian 26.4x
P/B now vs peer median 10.0xmedian 2.5x 3.6xmedian 2.5x 1.4xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median -26.83median 0.90 2.09median 0.90 0.95median 0.90

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 monthsRKLBGDRDW
Revenue $769.15M $54.86B $426.27M
Gross profit $286.62M $8.44B $85.66M
Operating income -$223.49M $5.66B -$215.26M
Net income -$165.46M $4.49B -$244.10M
Free cash flow -$371.14M $6.45B -$98.20M
R&D $312.42M – $42.36M
EPS (diluted) $-0.26 $16.40 $-1.17
Cash & equivalents $2.13B $4.33B $557.72M
Total debt $1.72M $7.52B $48.06M
Shares (diluted) 629.68M 273.52M 220.47M
Enterprise value $30.56B $82.90B $1.09B

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
MetricRKLBGDRDW
P/E -221.9x 21.4x -7.6x
P/FCF -94.0x 14.9x -22.6x
P/Operating cash flow -156.8x 12.5x -29.1x
P/S 45.3x 1.8x 5.2x
P/B 10.0x 3.6x 1.4x
P/Tangible book 11.0x 3.8x 1.7x
EV/EBITDA -204.3x 15.1x -10.3x
EV/EBIT -145.8x 17.5x -7.9x
EV/Revenue 42.4x 1.8x 4.0x
EV/FCF -87.8x 15.4x -17.4x
EV/Operating cash flow -146.5x 12.9x -22.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -26.83 2.09 0.95

Growth

14 metrics
MetricRKLBGDRDW
Revenue growth (1Y) 52.5% 9.1% 63.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 49.2% 10.3% 26.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 95.7% 8.9% 1,193%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 109.3% 8.6% 22.4%
Operating income growth (1Y) -0.5% 9.4% -56.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -11.7% 10.3% -72.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 28.5% 9.8% -29.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -0.4% 10.0% -70.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 41.5% 8.8% 57.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 8.3% 10.2% -8.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -100.8% – 46.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -44.7% 23.0% -40.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -81.9% – 35.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -45.7% 28.7% -46.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricRKLBGDRDW
Gross margin 37.3% 15.4% 20.1%
EBITDA margin -20.7% 12.0% -38.9%
Operating margin -29.1% 10.3% -50.5%
Pretax margin -24.9% 9.9% -54.9%
Net margin -21.5% 8.2% -60.7%
FCF margin -48.3% 11.8% -23.0%
Operating cash flow margin -28.9% 14.0% -17.9%
Return on equity -5.7% 17.0% -18.0%
Return on assets -4.7% 7.5% -14.1%
Return on invested capital -6.7% 13.6% -15.1%
Return on capital employed -7.5% 13.9% -14.0%
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.9x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 1.7x 0.3x
Stock comp / revenue 10.6% 0.4% 17.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricRKLBGDRDW
Debt / assets 0.0% 12.5% 2.5%
Debt / equity 0.0x 0.3x 0.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 14.4x 0.5x 3.1x
Debt / FCF 0.0x 1.2x -0.5x
Liabilities / assets 16.6% 55.4% 16.1%
Equity / assets 83.4% 44.6% 83.9%
Interest coverage -13.9x – –
Current ratio 5.5x 1.4x 3.9x
Quick ratio 4.8x 2.8x 3.4x
Cash ratio 4.4x 0.2x 2.9x
Altman Z-score 30.42 4.17 3.92

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricRKLBGDRDW
Dividend yield – 1.8% –
Net buyback yield -6.6% 0.4% -34.2%
Shareholder yield -6.6% 2.1% -34.2%
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.

ConsensusRKLBGDRDW
Forward P/E – 20.2xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $-0.28FY2026 $17.56FY2026 $-0.77FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +13.7%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after – +8.9% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $918.00MFY2026 $53.43BFY2026 $463.08MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +52.5%FY2026 +1.7%FY2026 +38.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +51.6% +12.6% +25.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersRKLBGDRDW
Held by institutions 51.2% 86.5% 64.7%
Institutions holding 1,128 2,218 324
Change in shares held, QoQ +10.9% +0.1% +15.8%
Institutions buying 810 1,018 253
Institutions selling 238 832 57
Buyers to sellers 3.40 1.22 4.44

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.

RKLBGDRDW
RKLB 1.00 0.22 0.76
GD 0.22 1.00 0.23
RDW 0.76 0.23 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, RKLB, GD and RDW?

General Dynamics (GD) is the largest by market capitalisation: Rocket Lab (RKLB) $36.24B, General Dynamics (GD) $95.79B, Redwire (RDW) $1.94B.

Which company is growing faster?

Redwire (RDW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Rocket Lab (RKLB) +52.5%, General Dynamics (GD) +9.1%, Redwire (RDW) +63.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

General Dynamics (GD) has the highest net margin (Rocket Lab (RKLB) -21.5%, General Dynamics (GD) 8.2%, Redwire (RDW) -60.7%). On return on invested capital, General Dynamics (GD) leads (Rocket Lab (RKLB) -6.7%, General Dynamics (GD) 13.6%, Redwire (RDW) -15.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Redwire (RDW) returned the most: Rocket Lab (RKLB) -11.1%, General Dynamics (GD) +0.3%, Redwire (RDW) +8.0%. Over five years, Rocket Lab (RKLB) compounded fastest (Rocket Lab (RKLB) +34.3%/yr, General Dynamics (GD) +11.9%/yr, Redwire (RDW) -6.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, General Dynamics (GD) has been the steadiest (Rocket Lab (RKLB) 93.0%, General Dynamics (GD) 22.2%, Redwire (RDW) 112.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, RKLB, GD and RDW?

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