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RKLB vs. XYL: Rocket Lab vs. Xylem Stock Comparison

How do Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL) 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

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

Company profile comparison for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
Profile ItemRKLBXYL
NameRocket Lab CorporationXylem Inc.
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorIndustrialsIndustrials
GICS Industry GroupCapital GoodsCapital Goods
GICS IndustryAerospace & DefenseMachinery
GICS Sub-IndustryAerospace & DefenseIndustrial Machinery & Supplies & Components
Market Capitalization33.93 billion USD22.44 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNasdaqNYSE
Listing DateNovember 24, 2020October 13, 2011
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

RKLB
XYL
GSPC
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL), 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 Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
Total Return (1Y)12.96%-33.10%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)138.86%2.29%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)31.49%-4.47%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

RKLB
XYL
GSPC
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL), 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 Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Rocket Lab (RKLB) carries a highly aggressive beta of 3.14, indicating much higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, whereas Xylem (XYL) is closer to market-like at 0.96 — a noticeable difference in market-sensitivity profile.

Risk profile metrics for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)95.71%30.74%
Beta (5Y)3.140.96
Max Drawdown (5Y)-78.32%-44.89%
Avg. Volume (3M)19.51M2.60M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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RKLB and XYL 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 Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.09-1.22
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.14-1.48

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

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 Xylem (XYL) reports 9.76%, ranking against industry peers normally.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

-7.92%

Max
40.55%
Q3
19.29%
Median
12.12%
Q1
4.08%
RKLB
-7.92%
Min
-17.12%

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

9.76%

Max
40.55%
Q3
19.29%
Median
12.12%
XYL
9.76%
Q1
4.08%
Min
-17.12%
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Rocket Lab (RKLB) reports a negative net margin of -21.51%, usually indicating a net loss over the period. Meanwhile Xylem (XYL) reports 11.94%, ranking against industry peers normally.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

-21.51%

Max
27.47%
Q3
12.10%
Median
6.30%
Q1
1.40%
Min
-12.89%
RKLB
-21.51%

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

11.94%

Max
27.47%
Q3
12.10%
XYL
11.94%
Median
6.30%
Q1
1.40%
Min
-12.89%
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Rocket Lab (RKLB) reports a negative operating margin of -24.57%, usually indicating that operating costs exceeded revenue at the operating-income line. Meanwhile Xylem (XYL) reports 15.95%, ranking against industry peers normally.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

-24.57%

Max
36.60%
Q3
18.33%
Median
11.12%
Q1
5.14%
Min
-12.63%
RKLB
-24.57%

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

15.95%

Max
36.60%
Q3
18.33%
XYL
15.95%
Median
11.12%
Q1
5.14%
Min
-12.63%
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
ROE (TTM)-7.92%9.76%
ROA (TTM)-4.62%5.07%
Net Margin (TTM)-21.51%11.94%
Operating Margin (TTM)-24.57%15.95%
Gross Margin (TTM)37.26%39.32%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 37.96% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Xylem (XYL) at 5.52% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for RKLB.

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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Xylem (XYL) reports EPS growth of 7.40%, ranked against its industry; Rocket Lab (RKLB) has no EPS growth figure this period.

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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
Revenue Growth (YoY)37.96%5.52%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)41.82%17.84%
EPS Growth (YoY)--7.40%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)--25.99%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 5.48 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Xylem (XYL) at 1.39 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

5.48

RKLB
5.48
Max
5.22
Q3
2.95
Median
2.08
Q1
1.43
Min
0.36

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

1.39

Max
5.22
Q3
2.95
Median
2.08
Q1
1.43
XYL
1.39
Min
0.36
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 0.04 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Xylem (XYL) at 0.29 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

0.04

Max
2.33
Q3
1.12
Median
0.60
Q1
0.29
RKLB
0.04
Min
0.00

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

0.29

Max
2.33
Q3
1.12
Median
0.60
XYL
0.29
Q1
0.29
Min
0.00
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
Current Ratio (MRQ)5.481.39
Debt / Equity (MRQ)0.040.29
Net Debt / EBITDA--1.18

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Rocket Lab (RKLB) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Xylem (XYL) reports a yield of 1.69%, ranking against industry peers normally.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

Max
2.66%
Q3
1.14%
Median
0.24%
RKLB
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

1.69%

Max
2.66%
XYL
1.69%
Q3
1.14%
Median
0.24%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Rocket Lab (RKLB) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Xylem (XYL) reports a payout of 37.47%, ranking against industry peers normally.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

Max
67.39%
Q3
28.02%
Median
6.86%
RKLB
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

37.47%

Max
67.39%
XYL
37.47%
Q3
28.02%
Median
6.86%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.00%1.69%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)0.00%37.47%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: Xylem (XYL) trades at 21.69 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while Rocket Lab (RKLB) has no P/E ratio this period.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

--

Max
59.38
Q3
35.92
Median
25.41
Q1
19.47
Min
3.03
RKLB
--

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

21.69

Max
59.38
Q3
35.92
Median
25.41
XYL
21.69
Q1
19.47
Min
3.03
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): RKLB does not report P/E ratio, so it has no value marker; XYL is benchmarked against the Capital Goods industry group.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Xylem (XYL) at 2.48 prices around its industry’s typical P/S ratio, while Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 44.12 clears its benchmark range — RKLB looks notably rich on sales.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

44.12

RKLB
44.12
Max
7.54
Q3
3.76
Median
2.15
Q1
1.03
Min
0.03

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

2.48

Max
7.54
Q3
3.76
XYL
2.48
Median
2.15
Q1
1.03
Min
0.03
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Xylem (XYL) at 2.19 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Rocket Lab (RKLB) at 9.09 carries an above-peer premium to book — RKLB is pricier on assets.

RKLB

Capital Goods industry group

9.09

Max
9.66
RKLB
9.09
Q3
5.00
Median
3.12
Q1
1.81
Min
-1.08

XYL

Capital Goods industry group

2.19

Max
9.66
Q3
5.00
Median
3.12
XYL
2.19
Q1
1.81
Min
-1.08
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Rocket Lab (RKLB) vs. Xylem (XYL): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Rocket Lab (RKLB) and Xylem (XYL)
MetricRKLBXYL
P/E Ratio (TTM)--21.69
P/S Ratio (TTM)44.122.48
P/B Ratio (MRQ)9.092.19
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)-0.74%5.39%