Curtiss-Wright Corporation (NYSE: CW) and Spirit Aerosystems Holdings (NYSE:SPR) are both mid-cap aerospace companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitabiliy, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, institutional ownership and earnings.
Profitability
This table compares Curtiss-Wright Corporation and Spirit Aerosystems Holdings’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Curtiss-Wright Corporation | 9.14% | 14.79% | 6.42% |
| Spirit Aerosystems Holdings | 4.97% | 30.82% | 10.70% |
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Curtiss-Wright Corporation and Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Curtiss-Wright Corporation | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2.40 |
| Spirit Aerosystems Holdings | 2 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 2.35 |
Curtiss-Wright Corporation currently has a consensus target price of $107.00, indicating a potential upside of 11.19%. Spirit Aerosystems Holdings has a consensus target price of $69.36, indicating a potential upside of 0.80%. Given Curtiss-Wright Corporation’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Curtiss-Wright Corporation is more favorable than Spirit Aerosystems Holdings.
Dividends
Curtiss-Wright Corporation pays an annual dividend of $0.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Spirit Aerosystems Holdings pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. Curtiss-Wright Corporation pays out 11.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Spirit Aerosystems Holdings pays out 14.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Curtiss-Wright Corporation has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years.
Volatility & Risk
Curtiss-Wright Corporation has a beta of 1.25, meaning that its stock price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Spirit Aerosystems Holdings has a beta of 1.36, meaning that its stock price is 36% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Curtiss-Wright Corporation and Spirit Aerosystems Holdings’ revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | EBITDA | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Curtiss-Wright Corporation | $2.16 billion | 1.97 | $414.23 million | $4.41 | 21.82 |
| Spirit Aerosystems Holdings | $6.80 billion | 1.20 | $739.20 million | $2.74 | 25.11 |
Spirit Aerosystems Holdings has higher revenue and earnings than Curtiss-Wright Corporation. Curtiss-Wright Corporation is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
77.0% of Curtiss-Wright Corporation shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.5% of Spirit Aerosystems Holdings shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.1% of Curtiss-Wright Corporation shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Spirit Aerosystems Holdings shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
Spirit Aerosystems Holdings beats Curtiss-Wright Corporation on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.
Curtiss-Wright Corporation Company Profile
Curtiss-Wright Corporation is a manufacturing and service company that designs, manufactures, and overhauls precision components and provides engineered products and services to the aerospace, defense, power generation and general industrial markets. The Company operates through three segments: Commercial/Industrial, Defense and Power. The Commercial/Industrial segment’s products include electronic throttle control devices and transmission shifters, electro-mechanical actuation control components, valves, and surface technology services. The Defense segment’s products include commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) embedded computing board level modules, turret aiming and stabilization products, weapons handling systems, avionics and electronics, flight test equipment, and aircraft data management solutions. The Power segment’s products include a range of hardware, pumps, valves, fastening systems, specialized containment doors, airlock hatches and spent fuel management products.
Spirit Aerosystems Holdings Company Profile
Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. is a non-original equipment manufacturer (OEM), aircraft parts designer and manufacturer of commercial aero-structures. The Company is also a supplier of aero-structures. The Company operates through three segments: Fuselage Systems, Propulsion Systems and Wing Systems. The Fuselage Systems segment includes the development, production and marketing of forward, mid and rear fuselage sections and systems. The Propulsion Systems segment includes the development, production and marketing of struts/pylons, nacelles (including thrust reversers) and related engine structural components. The Wing Systems segment includes the development, production and marketing of wings and wing components (including flight control surfaces), and other miscellaneous structural parts. The Company’s maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services include repair stations that provide complete on-site repair and overhaul.
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