Northrop Grumman Corporation vs Union Pacific Corporation — how do they compare? Northrop Grumman Corporation trades at $519.79 (market cap $73.24B), while Union Pacific Corporation trades at $286.67 (market cap $169.16B). The key difference: Union Pacific Corporation is far larger — about 2.3× Northrop Grumman Corporation's market cap, and Union Pacific Corporation pays the higher dividend (1.99%). Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| NOC | UNP | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $73.24B | $169.16B |
Sector | Industrials | Industrials |
52-Week High | $768.02 | $310.62 |
52-Week Low | $496.02 | $214.91 |
Enterprise Value | $87.23B | $198.21B |
Dividend Yield | 1.92% | 1.99% |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Northrop Grumman (NOC) trades at $518.58, up 0.7% with a bullish technical oscillator signal despite bearish moving averages. The company shows strong fundamentals with consistent earnings beats, 10.48% net margin, and record $105 billion backlog. Recent news highlights defense spending growth and successful technology tests, while institutional ownership increased significantly in Q2 2026.
Outlook remains positive with 57% analyst buy ratings and $618.43 consensus target offering 19% upside. Key risks include defense budget volatility and execution challenges on large contracts. Revenue growth acceleration to 10.48% margin by 2026 supports valuation at reasonable 16.37 P/E multiple.
Union Pacific (UNP) trades at $288.45, down 0.4% with a bearish technical signal despite strong fundamentals. The company reported solid Q2 2026 earnings beat ($3.41 vs $3.26 expected) and maintains robust profitability with 28.85% net margin and 39.7% ROE. Recent news highlights progress on the Norfolk Southern merger, expected to close by late 2027, while institutional activity shows mixed positioning with some funds increasing stakes while others reduced exposure.
The stock offers upside to the $334.33 consensus price target with 58.7% analyst buy ratings, though technical resistance near $290-294 and merger regulatory risks warrant monitoring. Strong cash flow generation ($9.29B operating cash flow in 2025) and dividend payments ($1.42 declared for H2-26) support shareholder returns, while debt levels remain manageable at 46.06% debt-to-asset ratio.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Latest headlines on both assets
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 →Omaha, Nebraska-based Union Pacific is the largest public railroad in North America. Operating on more than 30,000 miles of track in the western two thirds of the U.S., UP generated roughly $22 billion of revenue in 2021 by hauling coal, industrial products, intermodal containers, agriculture goods, chemicals, and automotive goods. UP owns about one fourth of Mexican railroad Ferromex and derives about 10% of its revenue hauling freight to and from Mexico.
Read more on UNP →