NDSN vs. RKLB: Nordson vs. Rocket Lab Stock Comparison

Company Profile

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

Nordson (NDSN) has more than two decades of public-market history since March 18, 1980, 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 Nordson (NDSN) is closer to market-like at 0.98 — a noticeable difference in market-sensitivity profile.

Rocket Lab (RKLB) is heavily traded at around 19.51M shares per day, whereas Nordson (NDSN) sees a more moderate 381.48K — larger orders in the latter may require more patience and tighter control over order sizing.

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 Nordson (NDSN) reports 17.76%, 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 Nordson (NDSN) reports 18.63%, 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 Nordson (NDSN) reports 27.40%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Profitability Metrics

Growth

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 37.96% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Nordson (NDSN) at 3.78% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for RKLB.

Only one side can be read here: Nordson (NDSN) reports EPS growth of 4.93%, ranked against its industry; Rocket Lab (RKLB) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

Nordson (NDSN) at 1.82 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 5.48 sits above its industry’s typical mid-range — comfortable liquidity, though possibly with more idle current assets relative to peers.

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 0.04 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Nordson (NDSN) at 0.56 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

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 Nordson (NDSN) reports a yield of 1.06%, 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 Nordson (NDSN) reports a payout of 33.20%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Dividend Metrics

Valuation

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: Nordson (NDSN) trades at 31.36 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while Rocket Lab (RKLB) has no P/E ratio this period.

Both look expensive on sales: Nordson (NDSN) at 5.79 sits in the upper P/S ratio quartile, and Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 44.12 prices even higher, above its industry range.

Both Nordson (NDSN) at 5.28 and Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 9.09 carry a premium to book value versus peers, sitting in the upper P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

Valuation Metrics