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 AAR Corp. or CAE Inc. 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 AAR Corp. and CAE Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About AAR Corp. and CAE Inc.

AAR Corp. provides products and services to commercial aviation, government, and defense markets in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Parts Supply; Repair, Engineering, and Software; Government Solutions; and Legacy Commercial Programs. The company sells and leases used serviceable material and aftermarket distribution of new, and original equipment manufacturers supplied replacement parts. It also provides airframe maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services, such as airframe inspection, painting services, line maintenance, airframe modifications, structural repairs, avionics service and installation, exterior and interior refurbishment and engineering services, and support for various commercial and military aircraft; component MRO services, including repair and overhaul services, engine and airframe accessories, and interior refurbishment; software solutions comprising cloud-based, mobile, and AI-enabled aviation aftermarket software; develops PMA parts for aftermarket applications; and designs proprietary designated engineering representative repairs. In addition, the company designs, manufactures, and repairs transportation pallets; offers fleet management and operations of customer-owned aircraft; provision of supply chain logistics services, such as material planning, sourcing, logistics, information and program management, and parts and component repair and overhaul services; and engineering, design, and system integration services for specialized command and control systems. Further, it provides asset-heavy flight hour-based component pool and repair programs for commercial airlines and distribution of consumables and expendables inventory. Additionally, it offers containers and shelters for military and humanitarian tactical deployment activities; and shelters, such as stationary and vehicle-mounted applications. AAR Corp. was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Wood Dale, Illinois.

CAE Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides training, simulation, and critical operation solutions in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, the Oceania, Africa, and rest of the Americas. The company operates through two segments, Civil Aviation; and Defense and Security. The Civil Aviation segment offers training solutions for flight, cabin, maintenance, ground personnel, and air traffic controllers in commercial, business, and helicopter aviation; a range of flight simulation training devices; and ab initio pilot training and crew sourcing services, as well as airline operations digital solutions for commercial airlines, regional airlines, business aircraft operators, civil helicopter operators, aircraft manufacturers, third-party training centres, flight training organizations, air navigation service providers, maintenance, repair and overhaul organizations and aircraft finance leasing companies. The Defense and Security segment operates as a training and simulation provider that delivers scalable and platform-independent solutions to enable and enhance force readiness and security for defense forces, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), government agencies, and public safety organizations. The company was formerly known as CAE Industries Ltd. and changed its name to CAE Inc. in 1993. CAE Inc. was incorporated in 1947 and is headquartered in Saint-Laurent, Canada.

Latest Aerospace & Defense and AAR Corp., CAE Inc. Stock News

As of September 2, 2026, AAR Corp. had a $4.9 billion market capitalization, compared to the Aerospace & Defense median of $3.9 million. AAR Corp.’s stock is up 50.3% in 2026, down 8.4% in the previous five trading days and up 62.2% in the past year.

Currently, AAR Corp.’s price-earnings ratio is 25.5. AAR Corp.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $3.3 billion with a 5.7% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 23.0%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $5.709 per share for the current fiscal year. AAR Corp. does not currently pay a dividend.

As of September 2, 2026, CAE Inc. had a $7.6 billion market cap, putting it in the 73rd percentile of all stocks. CAE Inc.’s stock is down 20.7% in 2026, down 3.1% in the previous five trading days and down 11.19% in the past year.

Currently, CAE Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 37.8. CAE Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $3.5 billion with a 5.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 2.6%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $0.917 per share for the current fiscal year. CAE Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

How We Compare AAR Corp. and CAE Inc. 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 AAR Corp. and CAE Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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AAR Corp. and CAE Inc. Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
AAR Corp.	AIR	A
CAE Inc.	CAE	A

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.

AAR Corp. has a Growth Score of 89, which is Very Strong. CAE Inc. has a Growth Score of 100, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Growth Grade breakdown above, both AAR Corp. and CAE Inc. have a grade of A. For investors who focus solely on a company’s upward growth, further research should be conducted into both companies’ other financial metrics before deciding whether to invest.

AAR Corp. and CAE Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
AAR Corp.	AIR	C
CAE Inc.	CAE	A

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks 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 the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

AAR Corp. has a Quality Score of 59, which is Average. CAE Inc. has a Quality Score of 82, which is Very Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: CAE Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, CAE Inc. has a better overall quality grade than AAR Corp.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, CAE Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

AAR Corp. and CAE Inc.’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
AAR Corp.	AIR	B
CAE Inc.	CAE	D

Momentum grades help to 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. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

AAR Corp. has a Momentum Score of 79, which is Strong. CAE Inc. has a Momentum Score of 30, which is Weak.

The Momentum Grade Winner: AAR Corp.

As you can clearly see from the Momentum Grade breakdown above, AAR Corp. is considered to have stronger momentum compared to CAE Inc.. For those specifically looking for companies that have stronger momentum compared to other companies in the same industry, AAR Corp. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other AAR Corp. and CAE Inc. Grades

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

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

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.

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 AAR Corp. and CAE Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, AAR Corp. or CAE Inc. Stock?

Overall, AAR Corp. stock has a Growth Score of 89, Momentum Score of 79 and Quality Score of 59.

CAE Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 100, Momentum Score of 30 and Quality Score of 82.

Comparing AAR Corp. and CAE Inc.’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.