LUV vs. ZTO: Southwest Airlines vs. ZTO Express (Cayman) Stock Comparison

Company Profile

Southwest Airlines (LUV) and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) both fall under the Transportation industry group, but LUV is classified in Passenger Airlines while ZTO is classified in Air Freight & Logistics.

Southwest Airlines (LUV) trades as ordinary local shares, while ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

Trailing Returns

Calendar-Year Returns

Performance Metrics

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

Return Distribution

Risk Metrics

ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) reports a negative beta of -0.18, suggesting inverse market sensitivity over the measurement window. That is uncommon for ordinary equities and can reflect commodity-linked or hedge-like exposure, but it can also come from statistical noise. Southwest Airlines (LUV) has a non-negative beta of 1.19.

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Profitability

Both Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 13.94% and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 16.28% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Both Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 3.34% and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 19.04% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 22.19% runs core operations around its industry’s norm, while Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 4.49% operates in the bottom quartile.

Profitability Metrics

Growth

ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 10.88% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 2.11% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for ZTO.

Both Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 3.95% and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 4.58% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 1.67 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 0.47 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

Both Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 0.94 and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 0.35 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 1.62% pays an industry-typical yield; ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 12.89% is above its entire peer range — the higher number, but one that calls for a look at payout sustainability before treating it as an advantage.

Both Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 35.12% and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 38.36% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

Dividend Metrics

Valuation

Both Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 21.68 and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 11.37 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 0.29 sits in the cheaper P/S ratio quartile while Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 0.69 prices around its industry’s middle — ZTO costs less per dollar of sales, though read it alongside growth and margins.

On P/B ratio, both Southwest Airlines (LUV) at 2.97 and ZTO Express (Cayman) (ZTO) at 1.66 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

Valuation Metrics