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Airlines

The 21 companies in this industry listed on the NYSE and Nasdaq are worth $170 bn combined; the largest are Delta Air Lines (DAL), United Airlines (UAL) and Ryanair Holdings (RYAAY). For each one: what it does, revenue, margin, free cash flow over the last five years and a score from 0 to 10.

Data as of October 2026

Open contest
21 companies value 170 bn revenue 311 bn margin 3.5% free cash flow 12 bn avg. score 3.3
DAL holds 28.9% of the group's value, 1.6x the runner-up
Rank Ticker Company Share Value Revenue Margin FCF 5 years FCF/px Yield What it does · why it is here
1 DAL Delta Air Lines
United States · score 6.3
 29% 49 bn 72 bn 4.6% 3.5 bn 7.2% 1.1% Airline with hubs in Atlanta, Detroit and Amsterdam · Most profitable US airline; strong premium revenue and loyalty program
2 UAL United Airlines
United States · score 5.7
 18% 31 bn 63 bn 5.6% 2.5 bn 8.2% — Airline with hubs in Chicago, Houston and Newark · Largest international network among US airlines
3 RYAAY Ryanair Holdings
Ireland · score 6.9
 16% 27 bn 17 bn 14.0% 2.0 bn 7.4% 1.8% Europe's low-cost airline · Europe's lowest cost-per-seat airline, profitable for decades
4 LUV Southwest Airlines
United States · score 2.7
 11% 19 bn 30 bn 2.8% -0.4 bn -2.1% 1.9% Southwest low-cost airline · Low-cost model with historically the strongest balance sheet in the sector
5 LTM LATAM AIRLINES GROUP S.A.
Chile · score 7.4
 8% 14 bn 14 bn 10.3% 2.0 bn 14.2% 4.4% South America's largest airline, for passengers and cargo · Chile — revenue of $14.3bn
6 AAL American Airlines Group
United States · score 0.8
 5% 7.7 bn 58 bn -0.6% 0.3 bn 3.7% — Airline flying to more than 350 destinations · Largest US domestic network by daily flights
7 CPA Copa Holdings
Panama · score 8.5
 3% 5.4 bn 3.6 bn 18.6% 1.1 bn 21.3% 4.9% Panamanian airline, hubbed at Tocumen · Latin America's most profitable airline; its Panama hub connects the continent
8 ALK Alaska Air Group
United States · score 3.4
 2% 3.8 bn 15 bn -1.2% 1.0 bn 26.9% — Airline of the US Northwest · The best-run regional US airline; bought Hawaiian
9 SKYW SKYWEST INC
United States · score 7.2
 2% 3.5 bn 4.2 bn 9.8% 0.9 bn 25.9% — Regional aviation under contract with the major airlines · Utah — revenue of $4.2bn
10 AERO Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V.
Mexico · score 5.7
 1% 2.3 bn 5.4 bn 6.6% 0.6 bn 25.0% — Mexico's flag carrier, flying domestic and international routes · Mexico — revenue of $5.4bn
11 ALGT Allegiant Travel CO
United States · score 3.3
 1% 1.8 bn 2.9 bn 0.9% 0.1 bn 6.4% — Leisure airline serving underserved cities · Nevada — revenue of $2.9bn
12 JBLU JetBlue Airways
United States · score 0.0
 1% 1.1 bn 9.5 bn -9.3% -1.1 bn -98.5% — Low-cost airline of the US Northeast · Low-cost airline with a strong base in New York and the US Northeast
13 ULCC Frontier Group Holdings, Inc.
United States · score 0.0
 1% 1.1 bn 4.2 bn -9.3% -0.2 bn -15.5% — Ultra-low-cost airline · Colorado — revenue of $4.2bn
14 VTOL Bristow Group Inc.
United States · score 2.0
 1% 1.1 bn 1.6 bn 6.7% -0.0 bn -3.0% — Largest global vertical flight and helicopter operator · Texas — revenue of $1.6bn
15 RJET REPUBLIC AIRWAYS HOLDINGS INC.
United States · score 2.4
 0% 0.8 bn 2.0 bn 3.5% -0.0 bn -4.9% — Second largest independent regional airline in the US · Indiana — revenue of $2bn
16 VLRS Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion, S.A.B. de C.V.
Mexico · score 5.0
 0% 0.7 bn 3.0 bn -3.4% 0.5 bn 66.8% — Ultra-low-cost airline in Mexico, with flights to the US, Central America and South America · Mexico — revenue of $3bn
17 UP Wheels Up Experience Inc.
United States · score 0.0
 0% 0.1 bn 0.7 bn -42.0% -0.4 bn -364.0% — On-demand private aviation with owned and partner fleets · Georgia — revenue of $720m
18 FLYX FLYEXCLUSIVE INC.
United States · score 0.0
 0% 0.1 bn 0.4 bn -5.3% -0.0 bn -24.1% — Fleet of Cessna Citation, HondaJet and Challenger business jets · North Carolina — revenue of $404m
19 SRFM SURF AIR MOBILITY INC.
United States · score 0.0
 0% 0.1 bn 0.1 bn -101.6% -0.1 bn -57.1% — Regional air mobility platform · Texas — revenue of $111m
20 SOAR Volato Group, Inc.
United States · score 0.2
 0% 0.0 bn 0.0 bn -11.8% 0.0 bn -3.5% — Aviation technology for on-demand private flights · Georgia — revenue of $30m
21 AZUL AZUL SA
Brazil · score 1.4
 — — 4.3 bn 0.6% -0.3 bn — — Passenger and cargo air transport in Brazil, a loyalty program and travel packages · Brazil — revenue of $4.3bn

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What this is. A catalogue, not a guide. Every industry with stocks listed on the NYSE or NASDAQ, the companies contending for its leadership, what each one does according to its own annual report, and the balance sheet it filed with the SEC.

The score runs from 0 to 10 and compares each company with every other one in the almanac on cash generation, profitability, debt, dividends and consistency over the last five years. The higher it is, the better the company fares in that comparison. Curious how much each part weighs? Ask at the bottom of the page.

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