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Stock Comparison · Industry comparison · Aerospace & Defense

Airbus vs Northrop Grumman: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

Northrop Grumman holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across growth and stability. Airbus SE still has the edge on profitability, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. Both sides have seen trend damage — neither carries a clear market edge right now. With both trends damaged, the structural comparison carries most of the weight here.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Peer scores are normalised within each company's primary universe (AIR.DE: HDAX, NOC: Russell 1000).

Updated 2026-05-17

The lead is spread across growth and stability, rather than sitting in one isolated gap. The overall score gap is 32 points in favour of Northrop Grumman Corporation.

INDUSTRY COMPARISON

Both operate in: Aerospace & Defense

This comparison is based on industry proximity, not on functional trajectory similarity. AIR.DE and NOC share the same industry classification.

For a similarity-based comparison, see how Airbus SE and Northrop Grumman each position within their functional peer groups in AssetNext.

Peer-Relative Score
AIR.DE
Airbus SE
41
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: HDAX
vs
NOC
Northrop Grumman Corporation
73
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: Russell 1000

Scores reflect position relative to comparable companies with similar long-term financial trajectories.

Score differences across key dimensions.

Dimension spread: AIR.DE vs NOC Profitability 67 53 Stability 29 80 Valuation 43 88 Growth 13 73 AIR.DE NOC
Gap Ranking
#1 Growth +60
#2 Stability +51
#3 Valuation +45
#4 Profitability +14
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for AIR.DE and NOC Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer AIR.DENOC Relative valuation Structural strength

Northrop Grumman Corporation looks stronger on relative valuation, while the broader price setup remains mixed.

Valuation position uses peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Entry today — historical context

Where AIR.DE and NOC each sit in their own 5-year price and valuation history.

BASED ON 5-YEAR HISTORY AIR.DE Elevated · below norm 0th 50th 100th 1 pct gap NOC Elevated · near norm 0th 50th 100th 85th 84th
AIR.DE (85th percentile) and NOC (84th percentile) both sit in the upper portion of their own 5-year ranges. The historical entry context is broadly similar for both. This reflects entry timing, not which company is structurally stronger.

Describes historical entry positioning only. Descriptive — not investment advice.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Growth
On growth, Northrop Grumman Corporation ranks near the top of the group; Airbus SE sits in the weaker half.
Stability
The same broad pattern appears on stability: Northrop Grumman Corporation ranks near the top of the group, while Airbus SE stays in the weaker half.
Growth — Dominant Gap
AIR.DE
13
NOC
73
Gap+60in favour of NOC

One company is still expanding while the other is contracting, which creates a very wide growth split.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

Capital efficiency also runs the other way, with a 7.8-point ROIC edge acting as a real counterforce.

What this means for the comparison

The lead is built on both growth and stability — though profitability still provides a counterweight.

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the AIR.DE vs NOC comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

Explore full breakdown →
Similar growth-and-stability comparisons

Explore how AIR.DE and NOC each compare against other companies in their peer groups.

Rule-based, descriptive analysis only. Derived from peer percentile dimensions. Not investment advice. Peer groups are determined algorithmically based on structural similarity — not by sector classification alone.

How AssetNext Peer Scores Work

AssetNext scores reflect each company's structural position within its functional peer group — not a ranking against all stocks simultaneously. Peers are identified by similarity across eight financial dimensions, including revenue growth trajectory, margin structure, capital intensity, and earnings stability. A score of 75 means the company ranks in the top quartile within its own peer group, not the entire market.

Four dimension scores drive the overall peer score: Growth (revenue trajectory and expansion dynamics), Quality (margin structure and capital efficiency), Valuation (peer-relative pricing on standard multiples), and Stability (earnings consistency and financial predictability). Each dimension is scored 0–100 relative to the peer group, then combined into an overall peer score using equal weighting.

Because scores are peer-relative, the same company can have slightly different scores in different index universes. On comparison pages, both companies are shown within their shared peer universe wherever possible — so the scores are directly comparable. The peer basis is stated on each score card.

Scores are recalculated periodically as underlying financial data is updated. All analysis is descriptive and rule-based — AssetNext describes structural realities and never issues buy, sell or hold recommendations.