Akamai Technologies, Inc. vs Northrop Grumman Corporation — how do they compare? Akamai Technologies, Inc. trades at $123.04 (market cap $16.77B), while Northrop Grumman Corporation trades at $574.99 (market cap $81.78B). The key difference: Northrop Grumman Corporation is far larger — about 4.9× Akamai Technologies, Inc.'s market cap, and Northrop Grumman Corporation pays a 1.63% dividend while Akamai Technologies, Inc. pays none. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| AKAM | NOC | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $16.77B | $81.78B |
Sector | Technology | Industrials |
52-Week High | $161.14 | $768.02 |
52-Week Low | $71.97 | $496.02 |
Enterprise Value | $22.75B | $95.77B |
Dividend Yield | — | 1.63% |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Akamai Technologies (AKAM) trades at $117.65, up 6.43% on the day, buoyed by a recent analyst upgrade. The stock shows bearish technical signals but has beaten earnings estimates for three consecutive quarters, with Q2 2026 revenue growth of 5% year-over-year. Profit margins are under pressure due to increased infrastructure investments, though cloud and security demand remains strong.
The outlook is mixed: solid revenue growth and a consensus price target of $150.11 suggest upside, but margin compression and bearish technicals pose risks. Investors should weigh the company's strategic positioning in AI and cybersecurity against profitability challenges and market volatility.
Northrop Grumman (NOC) trades at $577.89, up 1.1% today, with a bullish technical signal from moving averages and a record $105 billion backlog supporting fundamentals. Recent Q2 2026 earnings beat expectations, with sales growth of 5% and raised full-year guidance (Seeking Alpha, 2026-07-23). Valuation ratios like P/E of 18.3 and ROE of 26.96% reflect strong profitability, though RSI levels indicate overbought conditions.
The outlook is positive due to defense spending tailwinds and strategic contracts, but risks include margin pressure from specific programs and geopolitical volatility. Analysts maintain a buy consensus with a $598.57 price target, suggesting modest upside from current levels.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Latest headlines on both assets
Akamai operates a content delivery network, or CDN, which entails locating servers at the edges of networks so its customers, which store content on Akamai servers, can reach their own customers faster, more securely, and with better quality. Akamai has over 325,000 servers distributed over 4,000 points of presence in more than 1,000 cities worldwide. Its customers generally include media companies, which stream video content or make video games available for download, and other enterprises that run interactive or high-traffic websites, such as e-commerce firms and financial institutions. Akamai also has a significant security business, which is integrated with its core web and media businesses to protect its customers from cyberthreats.
Read more on AKAM →Northrop Grumman is a defense contractor that is diversified across short-cycle and long-cycle businesses. The firm's segments include aeronautics, mission systems, defense services, and space systems. The company's aerospace segment creates the fuselage for the massive F-35 program and produces various piloted and autonomous flight systems. Mission systems creates a variety of sensors and processors for defense hardware. The defense systems segment is a long-range missile manufacturer. Finally, the company's space systems segment produces various space structures, sensors, and satellites.
Read more on NOC →