GD vs. HWM: General Dynamics vs. Howmet Aerospace Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) are both classified in the Aerospace & Defense sub-industry within the broader Aerospace & Defense industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Company profile comparison for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Profile Item	GD	HWM
Name	General Dynamics Corp.	Howmet Aerospace Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Aerospace & Defense	Aerospace & Defense
GICS Sub-Industry	Aerospace & Defense	Aerospace & Defense
Market Capitalization	95.68 billion USD	81.84 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	January 2, 1962	November 1, 2016
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

HWM

GSPC

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

Loading price history…

Trailing total returns for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…

Calendar-year total returns for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
Total Return (1Y)	6.52%	5.06%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	16.95%	64.83%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	14.65%	46.04%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

HWM

GSPC

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

Loading price history…

Distribution of monthly total returns for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	23.03%	37.60%
Beta (5Y)	0.30	1.27
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-22.55%	-36.47%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.19M	3.47M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

GD and HWM are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.10	0.02
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.15	0.03

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 37.65% sits in the top ROE quartile, while General Dynamics (GD) at 18.01% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for HWM.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

18.01%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
GD: 18.01%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

37.65%

Max: 40.55%
HWM: 37.65%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 21.10% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of General Dynamics (GD) at 8.24%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

8.24%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
GD: 8.24%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

21.10%

Max: 27.47%
HWM: 21.10%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 28.78% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of General Dynamics (GD) at 10.49%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

10.49%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
GD: 10.49%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

28.78%

Max: 36.60%
HWM: 28.78%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
ROE (TTM)	18.01%	37.65%
ROA (TTM)	6.23%	13.97%
Net Margin (TTM)	8.24%	21.10%
Operating Margin (TTM)	10.49%	28.78%
Gross Margin (TTM)	15.42%	36.63%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both General Dynamics (GD) at 10.13% and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 11.06% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 32.03% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while General Dynamics (GD) at 13.35% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for HWM.

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
Revenue Growth (YoY)	10.13%	11.06%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	10.07%	13.37%
EPS Growth (YoY)	13.35%	32.03%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	8.22%	49.51%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 1.86 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while General Dynamics (GD) at 1.43 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for GD.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

1.43

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
GD: 1.43
Min: 0.36

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

1.86

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
HWM: 1.86
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both General Dynamics (GD) at 0.33 and Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 0.80 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

0.33

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
GD: 0.33
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

0.80

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
HWM: 0.80
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.43	1.86
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.33	0.80
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.68	1.35

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

General Dynamics (GD) at 1.76% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 0.25% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, GD the richer one.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

1.76%

Max: 2.66%
GD: 1.76%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

0.25%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
HWM: 0.25%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 9.80% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while General Dynamics (GD) at 36.90% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

36.90%

Max: 67.39%
GD: 36.90%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

9.80%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
HWM: 9.80%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.76%	0.25%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	36.90%	9.80%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

General Dynamics (GD) at 20.84 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 40.35 sits in the richer quartile — HWM needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

20.84

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
GD: 20.84
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

40.35

Max: 59.38
HWM: 40.35
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

General Dynamics (GD) at 1.69 prices around its industry’s typical P/S ratio, while Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 8.41 clears its benchmark range — HWM looks notably rich on sales.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

1.69

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
GD: 1.69
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

8.41

HWM: 8.41
Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

General Dynamics (GD) at 3.50 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Howmet Aerospace (HWM) at 14.20 prices above its benchmark range — HWM looks rich relative to book.

GD

Capital Goods industry group

3.50

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
GD: 3.50
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

HWM

Capital Goods industry group

14.20

HWM: 14.20
Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

General Dynamics (GD) vs. Howmet Aerospace (HWM): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for General Dynamics (GD) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM)
Metric	GD	HWM
P/E Ratio (TTM)	20.84	40.35
P/S Ratio (TTM)	1.69	8.41
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	3.50	14.20
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	4.76%	1.58%