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Side-by-side financial comparison of AAR CORP (AIR) and MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC (MSM). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($965.7M vs $795.3M, roughly 1.2× AAR CORP). MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC runs the higher net margin — 5.4% vs 4.4%, a 1.0% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, AAR CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (15.9% vs 4.0%). MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC produced more free cash flow last quarter ($7.4M vs $6.2M).
AAR Corp. is an American provider of aircraft maintenance services to commercial and government customers worldwide. The company is headquartered in Wood Dale, Illinois, a Chicago suburb. The company employs about 6,000 people, operating in about 30 different countries. John Holmes is the current CEO.
MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc (MSC), through its subsidiaries, primarily MSC Industrial Supply Co., is one of the largest industrial equipment distributors in the United States, distributing more than 1.5 million metalworking and other industrial products.
AIR vs MSM — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q2 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $795.3M | $965.7M |
| Net Profit | $34.6M | $51.8M |
| Gross Margin | 19.7% | 40.7% |
| Operating Margin | 6.0% | 7.9% |
| Net Margin | 4.4% | 5.4% |
| Revenue YoY | 15.9% | 4.0% |
| Net Profit YoY | 213.1% | 11.1% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.90 | $0.93 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $795.3M | $965.7M | ||
| Q3 25 | $739.6M | $978.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $971.1M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $928.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $979.4M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $935.3M | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $954.0M | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $1.0B |
| Q4 25 | $34.6M | $51.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $34.4M | $56.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $56.8M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $46.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $71.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $61.8M | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $69.3M | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $87.6M |
| Q4 25 | 19.7% | 40.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | 18.1% | 40.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 41.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 40.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 40.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 41.5% | ||
| Q4 23 | — | 41.2% | ||
| Q3 23 | — | 40.5% |
| Q4 25 | 6.0% | 7.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | 6.4% | 8.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 8.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 7.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 10.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 9.7% | ||
| Q4 23 | — | 10.6% | ||
| Q3 23 | — | 11.4% |
| Q4 25 | 4.4% | 5.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | 4.7% | 5.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 5.9% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 5.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 7.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 6.6% | ||
| Q4 23 | — | 7.3% | ||
| Q3 23 | — | 8.5% |
| Q4 25 | $0.90 | $0.93 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.95 | $1.02 | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $1.02 | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $0.83 | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $1.27 | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $1.10 | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $1.22 | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $1.56 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $75.6M | $40.3M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $952.7M | $214.1M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $1.6B | $1.4B |
| Total Assets | $3.2B | $2.5B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.61× | 0.16× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $75.6M | $40.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | $80.0M | $56.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $71.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $57.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $25.9M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $22.2M | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $25.8M | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $50.1M |
| Q4 25 | $952.7M | $214.1M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.0B | $168.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $285.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $289.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $299.8M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $294.5M | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $294.4M | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $224.4M |
| Q4 25 | $1.6B | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.2B | $1.4B | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $1.4B | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $1.4B | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $1.4B | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $1.4B | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $1.5B |
| Q4 25 | $3.2B | $2.5B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.9B | $2.5B | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $2.5B | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $2.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $2.5B | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $2.5B | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $2.5B | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $2.5B |
| Q4 25 | 0.61× | 0.16× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.82× | 0.12× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q4 23 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q3 23 | — | 0.15× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $13.6M | $29.4M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $6.2M | $7.4M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 0.8% | 0.8% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 0.9% | 2.3% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 0.39× | 0.57× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | — | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $13.6M | $29.4M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-44.9M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $151.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $101.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $143.5M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $78.7M | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $81.2M | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $132.5M |
| Q4 25 | $6.2M | $7.4M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-53.6M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $100.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $81.7M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $114.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $53.4M | ||
| Q4 23 | — | $62.7M | ||
| Q3 23 | — | $104.1M |
| Q4 25 | 0.8% | 0.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | -7.2% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 10.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 8.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 11.6% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 5.7% | ||
| Q4 23 | — | 6.6% | ||
| Q3 23 | — | 10.1% |
| Q4 25 | 0.9% | 2.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.2% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 5.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 2.2% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 3.0% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 2.7% | ||
| Q4 23 | — | 1.9% | ||
| Q3 23 | — | 2.7% |
| Q4 25 | 0.39× | 0.57× | ||
| Q3 25 | -1.31× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 2.67× | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 2.18× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 2.00× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 1.27× | ||
| Q4 23 | — | 1.17× | ||
| Q3 23 | — | 1.51× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
AIR
| Commercial Customer | $268.1M | 34% |
| Repair And Engineering | $244.5M | 31% |
| Integrated Solutions | $175.8M | 22% |
| Government And Defense Customer | $85.5M | 11% |
| Expeditionary Services | $21.4M | 3% |
MSM
Segment breakdown not available.
