UPS vs KEX vs JBHT Stock Comparison

United Parcel Service, Kirby and Hunt J B Transport Services Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
1 more company in this comparison (HTT) Create a free account to keep reading and compare up to 10 companies.
UPS United Parcel Service Inc
$106.13 +13.0% 1M +19.0% 1Y
Market cap
$89.45B
P/E
19.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$89.93B
Div. yield
–
Parcel Delivery Industrials
3 wins
KEX Kirby Corp
$137.21 +6.4% 1M +54.7% 1Y
Market cap
$7.60B
P/E
21.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.49B
Div. yield
–
Marine Shipping Industrials
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Kirby leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Kirby 5, United Parcel Service 3, Hunt J B Transport Services 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionUPSKEXJBHTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $89.45B $7.60B $21.04B UPS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 19.6x 21.4x 31.1x UPS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 15.7x 20.0x 33.9x UPS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -0.4% +6.6% +10.6% JBHT
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.1% 10.2% 5.1% KEX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 12.9% 8.3% 15.1% JBHT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.9x 1.3x 0.7x JBHT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +19.0% +54.7% +38.3% KEX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -13.1%/yr +20.4%/yr +3.2%/yr KEX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 31.0% 29.0% 34.9% KEX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 44/100 64/100 49/100 KEX

Percentile Scorecard

UPSKEXJBHT

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

AxisUPSKEXJBHT
Valuation 43 #78 of 136 41 #81 of 136 28 #98 of 136
Growth 22 #95 of 121 79 #26 of 121 54 #56 of 121
Profitability 69 #36 of 115 54 #53 of 115 67 #39 of 115
Financial Health 33 #96 of 143 66 #50 of 143 59 #60 of 143
Shareholder Returns 54 #38 of 82 80 #17 of 82 36 #53 of 82
Overall 44 64 49
  • UPS ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • KEX ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • JBHT ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodUPSKEXJBHTSPY
1 month +13.0%+6.4%+2.9% -0.2%
3 months +0.5%-5.6%-16.5% +3.9%
6 months +2.1%-9.1%-7.7% +8.2%
Year to date +7.0%+24.5%+19.4% +12.9%
1 year +19.0%+54.7%+38.3% +12.3%
3 years -21.3%+83.7%+39.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year -7.7%+22.5%+11.8% +23.3%
5 years -50.4%+153.0%+17.1% +67.9%
5 years, per year -13.1%+20.4%+3.2% +10.9%
10 years -1.8%+131.2%+186.3% +261.1%
10 years, per year -0.2%+8.7%+11.1% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureUPSKEXJBHTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 31.0%29.0%34.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 33.6%27.1%37.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.730.550.77 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.611.891.10 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -64.4%-38.8%-43.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -11.6%-10.1%-22.3% -1.2%
52-week high $120.00$152.59$298.41 $779.14
52-week low $89.22$88.64$158.92 $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.

MultipleUPSKEXJBHT
P/E now vs peer median 19.8xmedian 16.3x 20.6xmedian 16.3x 32.2xmedian 16.3x
P/S now vs peer median 0.9xmedian 1.0x 2.1xmedian 1.0x 1.6xmedian 1.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 9.5xmedian 8.7x 10.8xmedian 8.7x 13.5xmedian 8.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 14.6xmedian 11.4x 15.2xmedian 11.4x 22.4xmedian 11.4x
P/B now vs peer median 5.3xmedian 1.2x 2.1xmedian 1.2x 6.0xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median -0.87median 0.82 0.65median 0.82 -24.34median 0.82

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 monthsUPSKEXJBHT
Revenue $89.93B $3.49B $13.33B
Gross profit – $1.16B –
Operating income $6.58B $488.92M $960.11M
Net income $4.57B $355.89M $676.07M
Free cash flow $5.46B $475.58M $966.50M
EPS (diluted) $5.37 $6.62 $7.14
Cash & equivalents $4.65B $38.96M $3.75M
Total debt $24.48B $1.04B $1.12B
Shares (diluted) 851.00M 53.70M 94.65M
Enterprise value $66.34B $7.37B $21.01B

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
MetricUPSKEXJBHT
P/E 19.8x 20.6x 32.2x
P/FCF 14.6x 15.2x 22.4x
P/Operating cash flow 9.0x 10.2x 14.5x
P/S 0.9x 2.1x 1.6x
P/B 5.3x 2.1x 6.0x
P/Tangible book 7.1x 2.1x 6.0x
EV/EBITDA 9.5x 10.8x 13.5x
EV/EBIT 15.1x 16.9x 23.7x
EV/Revenue 1.1x 2.4x 1.7x
EV/FCF 18.2x 17.3x 23.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 11.2x 11.6x 15.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.87 0.65 -24.34

Growth

14 metrics
MetricUPSKEXJBHT
Revenue growth (1Y) -0.4% 6.6% 10.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -2.2% 5.1% 0.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 5.0% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 11.8% –
Operating income growth (1Y) -21.7% 18.0% 16.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -17.3% 22.6% -3.6%
Net income growth (1Y) -20.2% 17.2% 18.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -23.0% 26.8% -4.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -20.6% 23.2% 20.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -22.7% 31.6% -1.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 18.6% 21.4% -7.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -8.0% 18.5% -8.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 54.2% 82.1% 22.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -4.2% 43.3% 162.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricUPSKEXJBHT
Gross margin – 33.2% –
EBITDA margin 11.6% 21.8% 12.6%
Operating margin 7.3% 14.0% 7.2%
Pretax margin 6.5% 13.5% 6.7%
Net margin 5.1% 10.2% 5.1%
FCF margin 6.1% 13.6% 7.3%
Operating cash flow margin 9.9% 20.3% 11.2%
Return on equity 29.6% 10.4% 18.5%
Return on assets 6.4% 5.8% 8.4%
Return on invested capital 12.9% 8.3% 15.1%
Return on capital employed 11.6% 9.0% 14.9%
Asset turnover 1.3x 0.6x 1.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.9x 2.0x 2.2x
Stock comp / revenue 0.1% 0.5% 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricUPSKEXJBHT
Debt / assets 34.4% 16.7% 13.9%
Debt / equity 1.6x 0.3x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.9x 1.3x 0.7x
Debt / FCF 4.5x 2.2x 1.2x
Liabilities / assets 78.8% 44.6% 55.1%
Equity / assets 21.2% 55.4% 44.9%
Interest coverage 6.0x 11.0x 14.2x
Current ratio 1.2x 1.7x 1.2x
Quick ratio 1.0x 1.0x 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.1x 0.0x
Altman Z-score 2.83 3.27 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricUPSKEXJBHT
Dividend yield 6.2% – 0.8%
Net buyback yield -0.1% 4.5% 2.3%
Shareholder yield 6.0% 4.5% 3.0%
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.

ConsensusUPSKEXJBHT
Forward P/E 15.7xFY2026 20.0xFY2026 33.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $6.75FY2026 $6.86FY2026 $6.85FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -5.7%FY2026 +8.4%FY2026 +11.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +26.7% +29.0% +36.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $87.80BFY2026 $3.49BFY2026 $13.43BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -1.0%FY2026 +4.0%FY2026 +11.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +14.6% +4.7% +18.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersUPSKEXJBHT
Held by institutions 70.9% 99.6% 76.9%
Institutions holding 2,137 464 857
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.0% -0.1% +1.8%
Institutions buying 1,088 252 516
Institutions selling 809 145 233
Buyers to sellers 1.34 1.74 2.21

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.

UPSKEXJBHT
UPS 1.00 0.17 0.46
KEX 0.17 1.00 0.23
JBHT 0.46 0.23 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, UPS, KEX and JBHT?

United Parcel Service (UPS) is the largest by market capitalisation: United Parcel Service (UPS) $89.45B, Kirby (KEX) $7.60B, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) $21.04B.

Which stock is cheaper, UPS, KEX and JBHT?

United Parcel Service (UPS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (United Parcel Service (UPS) 19.6x, Kirby (KEX) 21.4x, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 31.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, United Parcel Service (UPS) is cheapest (United Parcel Service (UPS) 15.7x, Kirby (KEX) 20.0x, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 33.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: United Parcel Service (UPS) -0.4%, Kirby (KEX) +6.6%, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) +10.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Kirby (KEX) has the highest net margin (United Parcel Service (UPS) 5.1%, Kirby (KEX) 10.2%, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 5.1%). On return on invested capital, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) leads (United Parcel Service (UPS) 12.9%, Kirby (KEX) 8.3%, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 15.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Kirby (KEX) returned the most: United Parcel Service (UPS) +19.0%, Kirby (KEX) +54.7%, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) +38.3%. Over five years, Kirby (KEX) compounded fastest (United Parcel Service (UPS) -13.1%/yr, Kirby (KEX) +20.4%/yr, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) +3.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Kirby (KEX) has been the steadiest (United Parcel Service (UPS) 31.0%, Kirby (KEX) 29.0%, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 34.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, UPS, KEX and JBHT?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Kirby (KEX) leads on 5. 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.