Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. SKYW scored 68.4, UAL scored 60.9 — SKYW leads.
Compare another set
SKYW
SkyWest, Inc.
Airlines · Quality-Growth
68.4
$96.52 · $3.7B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
7.5
SKYW leads
UAL
United Airlines Holdings, Inc.
Airlines · Quality-Growth
60.9
$107.45 · $34.9B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestSKYW9.6x
Fastest growthSKYW+9.1%
Strongest balance sheetSKYW0.86
Highest qualitySKYW71 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueSKYW-69%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
SKYW
stronger →← stronger
UAL
71
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
59
50
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
50
91
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
77
SKYW is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
SKYW
UAL
$909mC+
FCF
$2.5bB
+9.1%B
Rev
+8.5%B
0.86C+
D/E
2.02C
9.6xA
P/E
10.1xA
1.66C+
PEG
6.50D
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
SKYW
UAL
69% below
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
0% above
~-20%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~7%/yr
+187%
1-yr DCF upside
-8%
+224%
5-yr DCF upside
0%
+284%
10-yr DCF upside
+11%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
SKYW
Why this score
Buying back stock
Cyclical growth
UAL
Why this score
Cyclical growth
The companies
SKYWSkyWest, Inc.
Airlines · $96.52 · beta 1.48
Why now
Airlines · market cap $3.7b. 18% off the 52-week high of $117.72. 6 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $125.33 (implying +30% upside).
Moat
ROE 15% meets the long-run market sustainable threshold — solid but not differentiated; the durability comes from elsewhere. Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income.
Risk
Beta 1.48 implies above-market volatility — position-size to the drawdowns this name will produce in a market correction, not to its bull-case return.
UALUnited Airlines Holdings, Inc.
Airlines · $107.45 · beta 1.30
Why now
Airlines · market cap $34.9b. Down 23% from 52-week high of $138.77 — deep drawdown territory. 23 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $152.78 (implying +42% upside).
Moat
ROE 21% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
D/E 2.02 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where SKYW and UAL diverge
On the headline score the gap is 7.5 points in favor of SKYW. The widest single difference is Value, where SKYW leads by 14.2 points.
ValueSKYW 90.9 · UAL 76.7SKYW +14.2
QualitySKYW 70.5 · UAL 59.0SKYW +11.5
GrowthSKYW 50.0 · UAL 50.0level
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is SKYW or UAL the better stock?
SKYW scores higher: SKYW 68.4, UAL 60.9 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do SKYW and UAL differ most?
The widest gap is value, where SKYW leads by 14 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. SKYW also leads quality, while growth is effectively level between them.
How are SKYW and UAL scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.