Sifting through countless of stocks in the Aerospace & Defense industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in The Boeing Company or Northrop Grumman Corporation because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation

The Boeing Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, sells, services, and supports commercial jetliners, military aircraft, satellites, missile defense, human space flight and launch systems, and services worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Commercial Airplanes; Defense, Space & Security; and Global Services. The Commercial Airplanes segment develops, produces, and markets commercial jet aircraft for passenger and cargo requirements. The Defense, Space & Security segment engages in the research, development, production, and modification of manned and unmanned military aircraft and weapons systems; strategic defense and intelligence systems, which include strategic missile and defense systems, command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, cyber and information solutions, and intelligence systems; and satellite systems, such as government and commercial satellites, and space exploration. The Global Services segment offers products and services, including supply chain and logistics management, engineering, maintenance and modifications, upgrades and conversions, spare parts, pilot and maintenance training systems and services, technical and maintenance documents, and data analytics and digital services to commercial and defense customers. The Boeing Company was incorporated in 1916 and is based in Arlington, Virginia.

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense technology company in the United States, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Aeronautics Systems, Defense Systems, Mission Systems and Space Systems. The Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, produces, integrates, sustains, and modernizes aircraft systems. This segment also offers unmanned autonomous aircraft systems, including high-altitude long-endurance strategic, surveillance and reconnaissance systems; and strategic long-range strike aircraft, tactical fighter and air dominance aircraft, and airborne battle management and command and control systems. Its Defense Systems segment designs, develops, integrates, and produces strategic deterrent systems, tactical weapons, and missile defense solutions; and provides sustainment, modernization, and training services for manned and unmanned aircraft and electronics systems. This segment also offers strategic missiles; integrated all-domain command and control systems; precision strike weapons; tactical solid rocket motors, and high-speed air-breathing and hypersonic systems; high-performance gun systems, ammunition, precision munitions, and advanced fuzes; and sustainment, operation, and modernization. The Mission Systems segment provides command, control, communication and computer, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems; radar, electro-optical/infrared, and acoustic sensors; electronic warfare systems; advanced communications and network systems; microelectronics; navigation and positioning sensors; maritime power, propulsion, and payload launch systems; cyber solutions; and intelligence processing systems. Its Space Systems segment offers satellites, spacecraft systems, subsystems, sensors, and payloads; ground systems; missile defense systems and interceptors; and launch vehicles and related propulsion systems. The company was founded in 1939 and is based in Falls Church, Virginia.

Latest Aerospace & Defense and The Boeing Company, Northrop Grumman Corporation Stock News

As of June 15, 2026, The Boeing Company had a $172.7 billion market capitalization, compared to the Aerospace & Defense median of $4.3 million. The Boeing Company’s stock is up 5.4% in 2026, up 6% in the previous five trading days and up 12.37% in the past year.

Currently, The Boeing Company’s price-earnings ratio is 91.7. The Boeing Company’s trailing 12-month revenue is $92.2 billion with a 2.5% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 14.0%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $-0.392 per share for the current fiscal year. The Boeing Company does not currently pay a dividend.

As of June 15, 2026, Northrop Grumman Corporation had a $78.2 billion market cap, putting it in the 96th percentile of all stocks. Northrop Grumman Corporation’s stock is down 4.5% in 2026, up 0.7% in the previous five trading days and up 9.58% in the past year.

Currently, Northrop Grumman Corporation’s price-earnings ratio is 17.0. Northrop Grumman Corporation’s trailing 12-month revenue is $42.4 billion with a 10.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 4.4%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $27.943 per share for the current fiscal year. Northrop Grumman Corporation currently has a 1.7% dividend yield.

How We Compare The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
The Boeing Company	BA	F
Northrop Grumman Corporation	NOC	C

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

The Boeing Company has a Value Score of 12, which is Ultra Expensive. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a Value Score of 43, which is Average.

The Value Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither The Boeing Company or Northrop Grumman Corporation has a high enough value grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolio. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if The Boeing Company or Northrop Grumman Corporation is the better investment when it comes to value.

The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
The Boeing Company	BA	C
Northrop Grumman Corporation	NOC	B

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

The Boeing Company has a Growth Score of 57, which is Average. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a Growth Score of 73, which is Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: Northrop Grumman Corporation

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, Northrop Grumman Corporation has a more attractive growth grade than The Boeing Company. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, Northrop Grumman Corporation could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
The Boeing Company	BA	C
Northrop Grumman Corporation	NOC	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

The Boeing Company has a Earnings Estimate Score of 40, which is Negative. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a Earnings Estimate Score of 41, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither The Boeing Company or Northrop Grumman Corporation has an Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade that could be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if The Boeing Company or Northrop Grumman Corporation is the better investment when it comes to estimate revisions.

Other The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation Grades

In addition to Value, Estimate Revisions and Growth, A+ Investor also provides grades for Momentum and Quality.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, The Boeing Company or Northrop Grumman Corporation Stock?

Overall, The Boeing Company stock has a Value Score of 12, Growth Score of 57 and Estimate Revisions Score of 40.

Northrop Grumman Corporation stock has a Value Score of 43, Growth Score of 73 and Estimate Revisions Score of 41.

Comparing The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman Corporation’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.