THE BOEING COMPANY vs NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP /DE/, two Aerospace & Defense stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Boeing builds commercial and defense aircraft, and it has spent recent years digging out of a hole: it loses money, burns a little cash at a free cash flow yield of -0.61%, and still pays holders 3.78%. The stock carries a $171.3B cap on the promise of a recovery that has not shown up in the profit line yet. Northrop Grumman is what a defense prime looks like when it works. It earns 26.74% on equity, keeps 10.8 cents of every revenue dollar, and throws off cash at a 4.64% yield, priced at 15.67 times earnings and 4.16 times book. One is a wager on a turnaround. Northrop is a business already turned.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | BA | NOC |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $222.22 | $539.53 |
| Market cap | $175.1B | $76.9B |
| Sector | Aerospace & Defense | Aerospace & Defense |
| Stage | Growth | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | — | +2.9% |
| P/E | 87.8 | 16.9 |
| P/B | 29.25 | 4.49 |
| P/S | 1.90 | 1.81 |
| EV/EBITDA | 34.0 | 14.0 |
| Revenue growth | +34.1% | +4.9% |
| Gross margin | 11.5% | — |
| Operating margin | 2.0% | 10.0% |
| Net margin | -8.0% | 10.8% |
| Return on equity | -122.6% | 26.7% |
| Return on assets | -4.5% | 9.2% |
| Return on invested capital | 6.0% | 13.0% |
| FCF yield | -0.6% | 4.3% |
| Dividend yield | 3.7% | 1.7% |
| Debt / equity | 8.32 | 0.89 |
| Current ratio | 1.18 | 1.15 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 1.51 | 2.84 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 3 / 9 | 4 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.