ITW vs. RKLB: Illinois Tool Works vs. Rocket Lab Stock Comparison

Company Profile

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) and Rocket Lab (RKLB) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but ITW is classified in Machinery while RKLB is classified in Aerospace & Defense.

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) has more than two decades of public-market history since March 13, 1973, whereas Rocket Lab (RKLB) listed on November 24, 2020 and has a much shorter record to draw on.

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

Trailing Returns

Calendar-Year Returns

Performance Metrics

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

Return Distribution

Risk Metrics

Rocket Lab (RKLB) carries a highly aggressive beta of 3.14, indicating much higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, whereas Illinois Tool Works (ITW) is closer to market-like at 0.91 — a noticeable difference in market-sensitivity profile.

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Profitability

Rocket Lab (RKLB) reports a negative ROE of -7.92%; negative ROE can reflect losses or negative shareholders’ equity, so it is harder to read as capital efficiency. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports 101.65%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Rocket Lab (RKLB) reports a negative net margin of -21.51%, usually indicating a net loss over the period. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports 19.39%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Rocket Lab (RKLB) reports a negative operating margin of -24.57%, usually indicating that operating costs exceeded revenue at the operating-income line. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports 28.05%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Profitability Metrics

Growth

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 37.96% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 0.92% is in the bottom quartile, showing a clear gap in revenue momentum.

Only one side can be read here: Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports EPS growth of -10.42%, ranked against its industry; Rocket Lab (RKLB) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 5.48 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 1.29 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 0.04 keeps leverage in the lower quartile, while Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 2.98 is above its industry debt-to-equity ratio range.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

Rocket Lab (RKLB) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports a yield of 2.29%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Rocket Lab (RKLB) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Illinois Tool Works (ITW) reports a payout of 58.43%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Dividend Metrics

Valuation

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: Illinois Tool Works (ITW) trades at 25.06 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while Rocket Lab (RKLB) has no P/E ratio this period.

Both look expensive on sales: Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 4.80 sits in the upper P/S ratio quartile, and Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 44.12 prices even higher, above its industry range.

Both look rich against book: Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 9.09 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Illinois Tool Works (ITW) at 25.42 prices even higher, above its industry range.

Valuation Metrics