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Side-by-side financial comparison of CF Industries (CF) and SONIC AUTOMOTIVE INC (SAH). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
SONIC AUTOMOTIVE INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($3.7B vs $1.9B, roughly 2.0× CF Industries). CF Industries runs the higher net margin — 26.4% vs 1.6%, a 24.8% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, CF Industries posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (22.8% vs 1.0%). Over the past eight quarters, CF Industries's revenue compounded faster (12.8% CAGR vs 3.4%).
CF Industries Holdings, Inc. is an American manufacturer and distributor of agricultural fertilizers, including ammonia, urea, and ammonium nitrate products. The company is based in Northbrook, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, and was founded in 1946 as the Central Farmers Fertilizer Company. For its first 56 years, it was a federation of regional agricultural supply cooperatives. CF then demutualized, and became a publicly traded company.
Sonic Automotive is a Fortune 500 company based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is the fifth largest automotive retailer in the United States as measured by total revenues. The company was founded by O Bruton Smith and completed its initial public offering on the NYSE in 1997.
CF vs SAH — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.9B | $3.7B |
| Net Profit | $495.0M | $60.8M |
| Gross Margin | 40.9% | 16.2% |
| Operating Margin | 33.0% | 3.1% |
| Net Margin | 26.4% | 1.6% |
| Revenue YoY | 22.8% | 1.0% |
| Net Profit YoY | 26.3% | — |
| EPS (diluted) | $2.56 | $1.79 |
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.
| Q1 26 | — | $3.7B | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.9B | $3.9B | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.7B | $4.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.9B | $3.7B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.7B | $3.7B | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.5B | $3.9B | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.4B | $3.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.6B | $3.5B |
| Q1 26 | — | $60.8M | ||
| Q4 25 | $495.0M | $46.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $460.0M | $46.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $492.0M | $-45.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $351.0M | $70.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $392.0M | $58.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $341.0M | $74.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $506.0M | $41.2M |
| Q1 26 | — | 16.2% | ||
| Q4 25 | 40.9% | 15.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | 38.1% | 15.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 39.9% | 16.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 34.4% | 15.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 34.4% | 14.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | 32.4% | 15.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 43.2% | 15.6% |
| Q1 26 | — | 3.1% | ||
| Q4 25 | 33.0% | 3.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 35.0% | 3.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | 34.3% | -0.6% | ||
| Q1 25 | 27.4% | 4.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 28.9% | 3.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 26.6% | 3.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | 40.6% | 3.1% |
| Q1 26 | — | 1.6% | ||
| Q4 25 | 26.4% | 1.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 27.7% | 1.2% | ||
| Q2 25 | 26.0% | -1.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 21.1% | 1.9% | ||
| Q4 24 | 25.7% | 1.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 24.9% | 2.1% | ||
| Q2 24 | 32.2% | 1.2% |
| Q1 26 | — | $1.79 | ||
| Q4 25 | $2.56 | $1.39 | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.19 | $1.33 | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.37 | $-1.34 | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.85 | $2.04 | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.86 | $1.67 | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.55 | $2.13 | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.30 | $1.18 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | — | — |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $3.2B | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $4.8B | — |
| Total Assets | $14.1B | — |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.66× | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | — | $6.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | — | $89.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $110.4M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $64.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $44.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | — | $17.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $67.2M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $3.2B | $1.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.0B | $1.5B | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.0B | $1.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $3.0B | $1.6B | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.0B | $1.6B | ||
| Q3 24 | $3.0B | $1.7B | ||
| Q2 24 | $3.0B | $1.7B |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $4.8B | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $4.8B | $1.1B | ||
| Q2 25 | $5.0B | $1.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | $4.8B | $1.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $5.0B | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | $5.2B | $1.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $5.5B | $944.7M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $14.1B | $6.0B | ||
| Q3 25 | $14.2B | $6.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $13.8B | $5.9B | ||
| Q1 25 | $13.3B | $5.9B | ||
| Q4 24 | $13.5B | $5.9B | ||
| Q3 24 | $13.8B | $5.8B | ||
| Q2 24 | $13.8B | $5.8B |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.66× | 1.51× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.61× | 1.39× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.60× | 1.48× | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.62× | 1.44× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.60× | 1.49× | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.57× | 1.67× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.54× | 1.81× |
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 | $539.0M | — |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $313.0M | — |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 16.7% | — |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 12.1% | — |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 1.09× | — |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $1.8B | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $539.0M | $66.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.1B | $167.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $563.0M | $136.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $586.0M | $195.8M | ||
| Q4 24 | $420.0M | $87.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $931.0M | $87.8M | ||
| Q2 24 | $475.0M | $-136.4M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $313.0M | $-195.6M | ||
| Q3 25 | $717.0M | $134.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $318.0M | $102.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $454.0M | $150.8M | ||
| Q4 24 | $223.0M | $-245.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $792.0M | $34.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $391.0M | $-185.2M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 16.7% | -5.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | 43.2% | 3.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 16.8% | 2.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | 27.3% | 4.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | 14.6% | -6.3% | ||
| Q3 24 | 57.8% | 1.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 24.9% | -5.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 12.1% | 6.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | 20.9% | 0.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | 13.0% | 0.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | 7.9% | 1.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | 12.9% | 8.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | 10.1% | 1.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 5.3% | 1.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.09× | 1.43× | ||
| Q3 25 | 2.31× | 3.59× | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.14× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.67× | 2.77× | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.07× | 1.50× | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.73× | 1.18× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.94× | -3.31× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
CF
| Ammonia | $591.0M | 32% |
| UAN | $493.0M | 26% |
| Urea | $372.0M | 20% |
| Other | $244.0M | 13% |
| Other Products | $147.0M | 8% |
| Ammonium Nitrate Segment | $25.0M | 1% |
SAH
| Retail new vehicles | $1.6B | 44% |
| Used vehicles | $1.3B | 34% |
| Parts, service and collision repair | $516.6M | 14% |
| Finance, insurance and other, net | $202.4M | 5% |
| Wholesale vehicles | $71.8M | 2% |
| Fleet new vehicles | $20.7M | 1% |
