SFL vs KEX vs FRO Stock Comparison

Sfl, Kirby and Frontline Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
SFL SFL Corp Ltd.
$13.18 +0.9% 1M +83.3% 1Y
Market cap
$1.91B
P/E
27.0x
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
6.37%
Marine Shipping Industrials
1 win
KEX Kirby Corp
$145.98 +10.7% 1M +44.5% 1Y
Market cap
$7.71B
P/E
20.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.60B
Div. yield
–
Marine Shipping Industrials
1 win
FRO Frontline plc
$56.54 +15.6% 1M +128.4% 1Y
Market cap
$12.59B
P/E
8.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.71B
Div. yield
6.31%
Marine Shipping Industrials
7 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Frontline leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Frontline 7, Sfl 1, Kirby 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionSFLKEXFROLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $1.91B $7.71B $12.59B FRO
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 27.0x 20.9x 8.5x FRO
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 24.0x 21.3x 5.7x FRO
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months — +8.5% +48.8% FRO
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — — 54.8% –
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — — 29.5% –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 6.1x — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 6.37% — 6.31% SFL
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +83.3% +44.5% +128.4% FRO
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +10.8%/yr +22.8%/yr +45.1%/yr FRO
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 31.0% 26.7% 44.8% KEX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 45/100 — 79/100 FRO

Percentile Scorecard

SFLKEXFRO

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

AxisSFLKEXFRO
Valuation 30 #95 of 136 43 #78 of 136 47 #72 of 136
Growth 55 #55 of 121 79 #26 of 121 97 #5 of 121
Profitability – – 98 #3 of 112
Financial Health 7 #131 of 140 – 67 #47 of 140
Shareholder Returns 89 #10 of 80 – 87 #11 of 80
Overall 45 – 79
  • SFL ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • KEX ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • FRO ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodSFLKEXFROSPY
1 month +0.9%+10.7%+15.6% +0.7%
3 months +7.2%+10.3%+44.6% +3.7%
6 months +14.3%-3.0%+54.9% +7.1%
Year to date +68.8%+32.5%+159.1% +12.8%
1 year +83.3%+44.5%+128.4% +11.9%
3 years +22.3%+97.6%+158.8% +85.2%
3 years, per year +6.9%+25.5%+37.3% +22.8%
5 years +66.6%+178.5%+541.8% +67.6%
5 years, per year +10.8%+22.8%+45.1% +10.9%
10 years +3.2%+147.4%+663.0% +262.0%
10 years, per year +0.3%+9.5%+22.5% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureSFLKEXFROSPY
Volatility, 1Y 31.0%26.7%44.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 29.1%27.1%45.2% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.360.560.50 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 2.691.672.87 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -52.6%-38.8%-56.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -4.1%-4.3%-4.5% -1.2%
52-week high $13.74$152.59$59.22 $779.14
52-week low $7.19$100.99$20.58 $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.

MultipleSFLKEXFRO
P/E now vs peer median 27.0xmedian 16.5x 20.9xmedian 16.5x 8.5xmedian 16.5x
P/S now vs peer median —median 0.9x 2.1xmedian 0.9x 4.6xmedian 0.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 11.3xmedian 8.8x —median 8.8x —median 8.8x
P/FCF now vs peer median —median 11.9x 14.6xmedian 11.9x 6.2xmedian 11.9x
P/B now vs peer median 1.8xmedian 1.2x —median 1.2x 4.0xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median -1.50median 0.84 0.75median 0.84 0.45median 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 monthsSFLKEXFRO
Revenue – $3.60B $2.71B
Operating income – $510.61M $1.63B
Net income $64.88M – $1.49B
Free cash flow – – $2.02B
EPS (diluted) $0.49 $6.96 $6.68
Cash & equivalents $113.10M – $321.42M
Total debt $2.38B – $2.43B
Shares (diluted) 133.06M 53.70M 222.62M
Enterprise value -$144.22B $7.71B $11.35B

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
MetricSFLKEXFRO
P/E 27.0x 20.9x 8.5x
P/FCF – 14.6x 6.2x
P/Operating cash flow – 12.3x 9.3x
P/S – 2.1x 4.6x
P/B 1.8x – 4.0x
P/Tangible book 1.8x – 4.0x
EV/EBITDA 11.3x – –
EV/EBIT 29.5x – 9.0x
EV/Revenue – 2.1x 5.4x
EV/FCF – – 7.3x
EV/Operating cash flow – 12.3x 10.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -1.50 0.75 0.45

Growth

14 metrics
MetricSFLKEXFRO
Revenue growth (1Y) – 8.5% 48.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) – 6.0% 12.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 22.5% 226.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 19.4% 24.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 82.4% – 524.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -18.9% – 21.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 78.2% 27.4% 524.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -18.0% 28.0% 19.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) – 3.3% 116.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 11.0% 17.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – – 218.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – – 20.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricSFLKEXFRO
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin – – –
Operating margin – – 60.1%
Pretax margin – – 54.9%
Net margin – – 54.8%
FCF margin – – 74.3%
Operating cash flow margin – 17.4% 49.8%
Return on equity – – 49.6%
Return on assets – – 25.9%
Return on invested capital – – 29.5%
Return on capital employed – – 31.0%
Asset turnover – – 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) – – 0.9x
Stock comp / revenue – – –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricSFLKEXFRO
Debt / assets 67.8% – 41.9%
Debt / equity 2.3x – 0.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 6.1x – –
Debt / FCF – – 1.2x
Liabilities / assets 70.6% – 45.7%
Equity / assets 29.4% – 54.3%
Interest coverage – – 8.8x
Current ratio 0.4x – 1.9x
Quick ratio 0.4x – 1.4x
Cash ratio 0.2x – 0.7x
Altman Z-score – – 4.64

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricSFLKEXFRO
Dividend yield 6.4% – 6.3%
Net buyback yield – – –
Shareholder yield 6.4% – 6.3%
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.

ConsensusSFLKEXFRO
Forward P/E 24.0xFY2026 21.3xFY2026 5.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.55FY2026 $6.86FY2026 $9.98FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +450.0%FY2026 +8.4%FY2026 +487.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +76.4% +29.0% -49.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $691.35MFY2026 $3.49BFY2026 $2.52BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -5.7%FY2026 +4.0%FY2026 +110.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +19.5% +4.7% -18.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersSFLKEXFRO
Held by institutions 43.5% 99.6% 33.6%
Institutions holding 223 465 262
Change in shares held, QoQ +15.8% -0.1% +36.6%
Institutions buying 133 252 152
Institutions selling 55 145 75
Buyers to sellers 2.42 1.74 2.03

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.

SFLKEXFRO
SFL 1.00 0.22 0.62
KEX 0.22 1.00 0.15
FRO 0.62 0.15 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, SFL, KEX and FRO?

Frontline (FRO) is the largest by market capitalisation: Sfl (SFL) $1.91B, Kirby (KEX) $7.71B, Frontline (FRO) $12.59B.

Which stock is cheaper, SFL, KEX and FRO?

Frontline (FRO) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Sfl (SFL) 27.0x, Kirby (KEX) 20.9x, Frontline (FRO) 8.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Frontline (FRO) is cheapest (Sfl (SFL) 24.0x, Kirby (KEX) 21.3x, Frontline (FRO) 5.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Frontline (FRO) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Kirby (KEX) +8.5%, Frontline (FRO) +48.8%.

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Frontline (FRO) returned the most: Sfl (SFL) +83.3%, Kirby (KEX) +44.5%, Frontline (FRO) +128.4%. Over five years, Frontline (FRO) compounded fastest (Sfl (SFL) +10.8%/yr, Kirby (KEX) +22.8%/yr, Frontline (FRO) +45.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Sfl (SFL) has the highest dividend yield: Sfl (SFL) 6.37%, Frontline (FRO) 6.31%. Kirby (KEX) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Kirby (KEX) has been the steadiest (Sfl (SFL) 31.0%, Kirby (KEX) 26.7%, Frontline (FRO) 44.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, SFL, KEX and FRO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Frontline (FRO) leads on 7. 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.