Rocket Lab Corp vs RTX CORPORATION, two Aerospace & Defense stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
RTX is a $256.5B defense-and-commercial-aerospace giant that earns 10.67% on equity, keeps 8.03 cents per revenue dollar, converts cash at 3.3%, pays a 1.42% dividend, and carries no net debt, priced at 35.26 times earnings and 3.77 times book. Rocket Lab is a $51.2B space upstart that earns nothing yet, a -26.87% net margin, a little cash burn, almost no debt at 0.02. RTX sells a diversified book of contracts and jet-engine work with profit already on the page. Rocket Lab sells a wager on small launch and space systems maturing into a real business. Established scale against speculative youth.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | RKLB | RTX |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $81.08 | $195.96 |
| Market cap | $49.1B | $267.4B |
| Sector | Aerospace & Defense | Aerospace & Defense |
| Stage | Growth | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | — | +22.6% |
| P/E | — | 36.8 |
| P/B | 21.68 | 3.93 |
| P/S | 72.23 | 2.96 |
| EV/EBITDA | — | 26.6 |
| Revenue growth | +45.8% | +10.5% |
| Gross margin | 38.2% | — |
| Operating margin | -27.9% | 11.6% |
| Net margin | -26.9% | 8.0% |
| Return on equity | -8.1% | 10.7% |
| Return on assets | -6.5% | 4.3% |
| Return on invested capital | -7.8% | 12.3% |
| FCF yield | -0.6% | 3.2% |
| Dividend yield | — | 1.4% |
| Debt / equity | 0.02 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 4.47 | 1.02 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 6.25 | 2.63 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 2 / 9 | 6 / 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.