NOC vs. SUNB: Northrop Grumman vs. Sunbelt Rentals Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) 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

Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but NOC is classified in Aerospace & Defense while SUNB is classified in Trading Companies & Distributors.

Northrop Grumman (NOC) has been public since December 31, 1981, giving it decades of market history across multiple cycles, while Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) listed only on March 2, 2026 and lacks comparable through-cycle data.

Company profile comparison for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Profile Item	NOC	SUNB
Name	Northrop Grumman Corporation	Sunbelt Rentals Holdings, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Aerospace & Defense	Trading Companies & Distributors
GICS Sub-Industry	Aerospace & Defense	Trading Companies & Distributors
Market Capitalization	74.59 billion USD	31.57 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	December 31, 1981	March 2, 2026
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

NOC

SUNB

GSPC

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB), 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

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Trailing total returns for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
Total Return (1Y)	-3.34%	--
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	7.23%	--
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	9.98%	--

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

NOC

SUNB

GSPC

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB), 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

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Northrop Grumman (NOC) reports a negative beta of -0.12, 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. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) has a non-negative beta of 1.10.

Risk profile metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	28.86%	45.72%
Beta (5Y)	-0.12	1.10
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-37.80%	-22.53%
Avg. Volume (3M)	902.47K	4.96M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Both NOC and SUNB need 1-year volatility and 1-year return to plot risk-return positioning.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.26	--
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.37	--

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 26.07% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 18.37% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for NOC.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

26.07%

Max: 40.55%
NOC: 26.07%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

18.37%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
SUNB: 18.37%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 12.12% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 10.37%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

10.37%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
NOC: 10.37%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

12.12%

Max: 27.47%
SUNB: 12.12%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 22.38% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 12.91%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

12.91%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
NOC: 12.91%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

22.38%

Max: 36.60%
SUNB: 22.38%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
ROE (TTM)	26.07%	18.37%
ROA (TTM)	7.11%	6.71%
Net Margin (TTM)	10.37%	12.12%
Operating Margin (TTM)	12.91%	22.38%
Gross Margin (TTM)	20.03%	38.78%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 2.24% and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 3.36% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 2.61% and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at -8.91% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
Revenue Growth (YoY)	2.24%	3.36%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.65%	4.88%
EPS Growth (YoY)	2.61%	-8.91%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	-2.60%	-4.89%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 1.23 and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 0.95 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

1.23

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
NOC: 1.23
Min: 0.36

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

0.95

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
SUNB: 0.95
Min: 0.36

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 0.93 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 1.53 uses more debt funding than most peers.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

0.93

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
NOC: 0.93
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

1.53

Max: 2.33
SUNB: 1.53
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.23	0.95
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.93	1.53
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.87	3.93

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 1.82% and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 1.87% offer top-quartile dividend income relative to share price within their industries.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

1.82%

Max: 2.66%
NOC: 1.82%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

1.87%

Max: 2.66%
SUNB: 1.87%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 22.63% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 30.18% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

30.18%

Max: 67.39%
NOC: 30.18%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

22.63%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
SUNB: 22.63%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.82%	1.87%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	30.18%	22.63%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 16.57 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 23.28 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for NOC, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

16.57

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
NOC: 16.57
Min: 3.03

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

23.28

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
SUNB: 23.28
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 1.71 and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 2.75 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

1.71

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
NOC: 1.71
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

2.75

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
SUNB: 2.75
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Northrop Grumman (NOC) at 3.99 and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB) at 4.24 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

NOC

Capital Goods industry group

3.99

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
NOC: 3.99
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

SUNB

Capital Goods industry group

4.24

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
SUNB: 4.24
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Northrop Grumman (NOC) vs. Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Sunbelt Rentals (SUNB)
Metric	NOC	SUNB
P/E Ratio (TTM)	16.57	23.28
P/S Ratio (TTM)	1.71	2.75
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	3.99	4.24
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	4.21%	5.47%