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HII vs NOC
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) vs. Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- HII has significantly outperformed NOC over the past year, with returns around 80-98% compared to NOC's 22-37%.
- Both stocks operate in the aerospace and defense sector, but HII focuses on naval shipbuilding while NOC offers broader exposure to aeronautics, space, and missile systems.
- Recent market activity shows HII pulling back amid shipyard expansions and AI integrations, while NOC demonstrated stability with a recent earnings beat.
- HII trades at a higher trailing P/E (price-to-earnings) ratio of about 25 versus NOC's 22, reflecting growth expectations in naval demand.
- NOC boasts a larger market cap of over $90 billion compared to HII's $15 billion, offering greater scale and diversification.
- Tickeron's AI analysis leans toward HII for its superior relative momentum and backlog growth in recent periods.
Introduction
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) and Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC) are prominent players in the aerospace and defense sector, benefiting from sustained government spending on national security. This comparison analyzes their business models, recent performance, and market positioning, aiding investors seeking exposure to defense contractors amid geopolitical tensions and budget debates. Traders focused on relative performance and sector rotation will find insights into momentum, valuation, and catalysts driving these stocks in the current environment.
HII Overview and Recent Performance
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) is the largest military shipbuilder in the United States, specializing in aircraft carriers, submarines, and amphibious warships through its Ingalls and Newport News divisions. In recent market activity, HII shares have experienced volatility, trading around $390 after a strong yearly gain of over 80%, with a year-to-date (YTD) rise of about 15%. Sentiment has been influenced by investments exceeding $1 billion in shipyard infrastructure, partnerships in AI automation for naval operations, and progress on submarine redeliveries. These developments underscore robust backlog growth amid rising naval demand, though shares pulled back in recent weeks from 52-week highs near $460, reflecting broader sector rotations.
NOC Overview and Recent Performance
Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC) is a global leader in aerospace, defense, and space systems, with key segments in aeronautics (B-21 Raider), space, mission systems, and defense. Shares have shown resilience in recent weeks, trading near $640 following a Q1 earnings beat with sales topping estimates and reaffirmed 2026 guidance, contributing to a YTD gain of around 12-15% and 1-year returns of about 22-25%. Positive sentiment stems from strong demand in aeronautics, a dividend increase to $2.31 per share, and a massive backlog, though shares remain below 52-week highs of $774 amid market caution. Lower beta (0.05) highlights NOC's defensive positioning compared to peers.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
HII and NOC both thrive on U.S. defense budgets but differ in focus: HII's shipbuilding model emphasizes long-cycle naval contracts, driving higher growth potential (recent revenue trends) but exposure to program delays, while NOC's diversified portfolio across aeronautics and space offers stability and scale. Recent momentum favors HII's explosive yearly gains versus NOC's steadier climb, yet NOC edges in market cap ($90B+ vs. $15B) and lower volatility (beta 0.36 vs. 0.05). Risk factors include HII's naval dependency amid budget scrutiny and NOC's higher debt-to-equity (107%). Sector exposure aligns on defense tailwinds, but sentiment tilts toward HII for backlog execution and NOC for earnings consistency, presenting trade-offs in growth versus resilience.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron's AI currently favors HII over NOC, based on stronger trend consistency, superior one-year relative performance, and catalysts like shipyard expansions and naval demand. While NOC provides defensive stability, HII's positioning suggests higher probability of outperformance in the near term amid sector rotation.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer. Disclaimers and Limitations
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is HII is a StrongBuy and NOC is a StrongBuy.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
HII’s FA Score shows that 1 FA rating(s) are green whileNOC’s FA Score has 0 green FA rating(s).
- HII’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- NOC’s FA Score: 0 green, 5 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
HII’s TA Score shows that 5 TA indicator(s) are bullish while NOC’s TA Score has 4 bullish TA indicator(s).
- HII’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 4 bearish.
- NOC’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 4 bearish.
Price Growth
HII (@Aerospace & Defense) experienced а -5.04% price change this week, while NOC (@Aerospace & Defense) price change was -6.87% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Aerospace & Defense industry was -3.54%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was -4.48%, and the average quarterly price growth was +13.68%.
Reported Earning Dates
HII is expected to report earnings on Jul 30, 2026.
NOC is expected to report earnings on Jul 21, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Aerospace & Defense (-3.54% weekly)Aerospace & Defense is one of largest industries in the U.S., mainly comprising the following areas: commercial airliners, military aircraft, missiles, space, and general aviation. Focused heavily on research & development, it is also one of the fastest growing industries. Military aircraft has the largest market share in the industry’s sales, followed by space systems, civil aircraft, and missiles. Aerospace exports, directly and indirectly, support more jobs than the export of any other commodity, according to a study by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Boeing Company, Lockheed Martin Corporation and General Electric Company are some of the most prominent players in this space.
| HII | NOC | HII / NOC | |
| Capitalization | 11.2B | 72.9B | 15% |
| EBITDA | 1.2B | 7.7B | 16% |
| Gain YTD | -16.019 | -10.350 | 155% |
| P/E Ratio | 18.08 | 15.90 | 114% |
| Revenue | 12.8B | 42.4B | 30% |
| Total Cash | 216M | 2.09B | 10% |
| Total Debt | 2.93B | 16.3B | 18% |
HII | NOC | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 52 | 55 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 26 Undervalued | 52 Fair valued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 70 | 63 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 65 | 34 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 63 | 62 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 47 | 71 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 50 | n/a |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
HII's Valuation (26) in the Aerospace And Defense industry is in the same range as NOC (52). This means that HII’s stock grew similarly to NOC’s over the last 12 months.
NOC's Profit vs Risk Rating (63) in the Aerospace And Defense industry is in the same range as HII (70). This means that NOC’s stock grew similarly to HII’s over the last 12 months.
NOC's SMR Rating (34) in the Aerospace And Defense industry is in the same range as HII (65). This means that NOC’s stock grew similarly to HII’s over the last 12 months.
NOC's Price Growth Rating (62) in the Aerospace And Defense industry is in the same range as HII (63). This means that NOC’s stock grew similarly to HII’s over the last 12 months.
HII's P/E Growth Rating (47) in the Aerospace And Defense industry is in the same range as NOC (71). This means that HII’s stock grew similarly to NOC’s over the last 12 months.
| HII | NOC | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 64% | 2 days ago 62% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 58% | 2 days ago 56% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 54% | 2 days ago 45% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 63% | 2 days ago 54% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 57% | 2 days ago 46% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 56% | 2 days ago 37% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 29 days ago 59% | 26 days ago 60% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 57% | 2 days ago 46% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 61% | 2 days ago 67% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 68% | 2 days ago 38% |
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NOC and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, NOC has been loosely correlated with LHX. These tickers have moved in lockstep 65% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if NOC jumps, then LHX could also see price increases.