MMM vs NOC
3M Co. and Northrop Grumman Corp., side by side — 10 fiscal years reported in USD, drawn from SEC filings.
Most recent reported year
| Metric | MMM | NOC |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $24.9B | $42.0B |
| Net income | $3.2B | $4.2B |
| Gross margin | 39.9% | · |
| Net margin | 13.1% | 10.0% |
| Return on equity | 76.1% | 26.2% |
| Diluted EPS | $6.00 | $29.08 |
| Dividend / share | $2.92 | $8.99 |
| Payout ratio | 48.1% | 30.9% |
| Free cash flow | $1.4B | $3.3B |
| Equity | $4.7B | $16.7B |
| Net debt / equity | 1.57× | 0.68× |
| Current ratio | 1.71× | 1.10× |
| Revenue CAGR 5y | −5.0% | 2.7% |
| Profit CAGR 5y | −9.8% | 5.6% |
NOC bills 1.7× the revenue of MMM, and MMM keeps more of each dollar of revenue as profit (13.1% against 10.0%).
The stronger figure of the pair is set in bold. That is arithmetic, not a recommendation — this page does not pick a winner. "·" marks a figure not available in our data.
10 years side by side
| Fiscal year | MMM | NOC |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $24.9B | $42.0B |
| FY2024 | $24.6B | $41.0B |
| FY2023 | $24.6B | $39.3B |
| FY2022 | $26.2B | $36.6B |
| FY2021 | $35.4B | $35.7B |
| FY2020 | $32.2B | $36.8B |
| FY2019 | $32.1B | $33.8B |
| FY2018 | $32.8B | $30.1B |
| FY2017 | $31.7B | $26.0B |
| FY2016 | $30.1B | $24.7B |
Bottom line
| Fiscal year | MMM | NOC |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $3.2B | $4.2B |
| FY2024 | $4.2B | $4.2B |
| FY2023 | $-7.0B | $2.1B |
| FY2022 | $5.8B | $4.9B |
| FY2021 | $5.9B | $7.0B |
| FY2020 | $5.4B | $3.2B |
| FY2019 | $4.5B | $2.2B |
| FY2018 | $5.3B | $3.2B |
| FY2017 | $4.9B | $2.9B |
| FY2016 | $5.0B | $2.0B |
19 fiscal years
| Fiscal year | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | −$17,006,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2024 | −$16,458,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2023 | −$14,680,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2022 | −$10,441,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2021 | −$312,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2020 | −$4,615,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2019 | −$1,705,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2018 | +$2,670,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2017 | +$5,653,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2016 | +$5,403,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2015 | +$6,748,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2014 | +$7,842,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2013 | +$6,210,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2012 | +$4,686,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2011 | +$3,199,000,000 | MMM |
| FY2010 | −$1,481,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2009 | −$4,527,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2008 | −$7,046,000,000 | NOC |
| FY2007 | −$5,879,000,000 | NOC |
The higher-revenue side has changed between MMM and NOC over this period. The gap has widened since the earliest year compared.
19 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
19 fiscal years
| Fiscal year | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | +3.1 pp | MMM |
| FY2024 | +6.9 pp | MMM |
| FY2023 | −33.6 pp | NOC |
| FY2022 | +8.8 pp | MMM |
| FY2021 | −2.9 pp | NOC |
| FY2020 | +8.3 pp | MMM |
| FY2019 | +7.5 pp | MMM |
| FY2018 | +5.6 pp | MMM |
| FY2017 | +4.3 pp | MMM |
| FY2016 | +8.5 pp | MMM |
| FY2015 | +7.5 pp | MMM |
| FY2014 | +7.1 pp | MMM |
| FY2013 | +7.4 pp | MMM |
| FY2012 | +7.2 pp | MMM |
| FY2011 | +6.7 pp | MMM |
| FY2010 | +8.3 pp | MMM |
| FY2009 | +7.9 pp | MMM |
| FY2008 | +17.8 pp | MMM |
| FY2007 | +11.1 pp | MMM |
The higher net margin has changed hands between MMM and NOC over this period.
19 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Standard deviation, each side
MMM's net margin has been more volatile than NOC's over the 19 comparable fiscal years — 10.1 percentage points of standard deviation against 4.3.
19 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Year by year
The lead in net margin changed hands between MMM and NOC over these 19 fiscal years — MMM led in 17 and NOC in 2.
19 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Standard deviation, each side
MMM's return on equity has been more volatile than NOC's over the 19 comparable fiscal years — 30.7 percentage points of standard deviation against 14.6.
19 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Year by year
The lead in return on equity changed hands between MMM and NOC over these 19 fiscal years — MMM led in 16 and NOC in 3.
19 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.