BA vs XLI Stock Comparison

XLI currently leads BA in this stock comparison, with AIQ scores of 54 vs 46. The clearest difference is quality, while BA has the stronger momentum profile.

Market data as of Oct 21, 2026 market close· AIQ score gap 8 points
BA
Industrials
vs
XLI
Equity
BA
The Boeing Company
Price
$192
Day move
+0.95%
AIQ Score
46/100
Best edge
Momentum
Sector
Industrials
XLI
State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF
Leads
Price
$168
Day move
+0.91%
AIQ Score
54/100
Best edge
Quality
Sector
Equity

What is the main difference between BA and XLI?

XLI leads the current stock comparison as State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF, with the clearest separation coming from quality and the broader AIQ evidence mix.

AlgovestIQ AIQ Comparison

The Boeing Company vs State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF

Data as of Oct 21, 2026· market close· BA (stock) vs XLI (ETF)· Coverage 65/66 fields· 42/42 directly comparable· Moderate confidence
AIQ VerdictCompetitiveAIQ Comparison Conviction 6/10

XLI leads

XLI leads by 8 AIQ points, primarily on Quality and Risk Resilience, but the lead has narrowed from 14 points over 30 sessions.

Competitive: 3 of 4 evidence groups support XLI, its lead is narrowing, and its signal state is cleanly positive.

Evidence agreement: 3 of 4Comparison trend: Weakening
BA

The Boeing Company

AIQ Score
46/100
AIQ Edge Score
4/10
XLI

State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF

Leads
AIQ Score
54/100
AIQ Edge Score
5/10

The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors XLI over BA, 54 versus 46 as of Oct 21, 2026. XLI's advantage is driven primarily by stronger quality and risk resilience, while BA holds the stronger momentum profile. XLI also shows the stronger technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average. 3 of 4 covered evidence groups favor XLI today, and the comparison is rated Competitive on stability: the leader's advantage has been narrowing. XLI lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 14 to 8 points over 30 sessions.

Compare The Boeing Company and State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF across the Algovestiq AIQ Score, valuation, quality, momentum, risk, technicals and analyst expectations.

Currently unavailable

Performance over time

Total return with distributions reinvested, from daily closes.

BA
-10.6%
XLI
+71.5%

Total return comparison

Growth of $10,000, distributions reinvested

BA $8,944 · XLI $17,149

Split-adjusted closes; each distribution is reinvested at the close on its ex-dividend date. Taxes and trading costs are not modeled.

Compare BA and XLI against another ticker

Open a multi-ticker workspace without changing this focused pair page.

Basic: 2 symbols·Explorer: 3 symbols·Pro and Premium: 5 symbols·Your limit: 2

AIQ Factor Divergence

Where the two separate, on the four dimensions behind the AIQ Score. Bars read outward from a shared zero: further from the centre is a wider gap.

BA advantage
0
XLI advantage
  • Quality42 vs 68
    XLI +26
  • Risk Resilience56 vs 81
    XLI +25
  • Momentum51 vs 41
    BA +10
  • Value40 vs 36
    BA +4

3 of 4 evidence groups favor XLI. XLI’s edge is concentrated in quality and risk resilience; BA keeps a meaningful momentum edge.

What changed since the last close

Latest scored session 2026-10-20, compared against the prior scored session 2026-10-19.

BA+1 AIQ

Largest factor move: Momentum +1

No signal started or stopped since the prior session; its 3 active signals are unchanged.

XLI+2 AIQ

Largest factor move: Momentum +5

No signal started or stopped since the prior session; its 4 active signals are unchanged.

XLI's lead widened by 1 AIQ point in the latest session.

Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — BA and XLI both carry a full feed there.

The central trade-off

XLI (State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF): the stronger current systematic profile, led by quality and risk resilience.

BA (The Boeing Company): the counter-case, on momentum, value, valuation — but at materially higher volatility, 32.9% against 13.2%.

Which one fits your objective

The same two names rank differently depending on what you are optimizing for. All six reads are shown at once — none of them is hidden behind a toggle.

Balanced

XLI

XLI on the overall AIQ Score, which weights Quality and Value most heavily.

Growth

Even

Growth figures are not covered for both names.

Value

BA

BA on the peer-relative Value factor, by 4 points.

Momentum

BA

BA on the Momentum factor, by 10 points.

Lower downside

XLI

XLI on Risk Resilience, by 25 points.

Analyst upside

Even

Analyst targets are level or not covered for both names.

AIQ vs Wall Street

Where the systematic read and the analyst consensus line up — and where they do not.

MeasureBAXLINote
Implied upside to target+41.5%—Level
Target dispersion+29.4%—Lower is tighter analyst agreement
ConsensusBuy—Context, not a primary driver
Analysts covering9—Higher coverage generally improves confidence

Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions. Dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.

AIQ Agreement Matrix

3 of 4 covered evidence groups favor XLI. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.

Evidence groupFavorsReading
AIQ ScoreXLI46 vs 54
FundamentalsNot coveredNot covered
ValuationBAValue 40 vs 36
TechnicalsXLIPrice vs 50-day -5.6% vs -2.9%; vs 200-day -13.1% vs -3.6%
Risk ResilienceXLIRisk Resilience 56 vs 81
Analyst expectationsNot coveredNot covered

✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of BA and XLI and are excluded from the count.

AIQ Decision Stability

Competitive

The two are close enough that your objective, not the score, should decide.

  • The AIQ gap is moderate at 8 points.
  • The leader's advantage has been narrowing. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
  • The lead has been steady session to session. (supports the conclusion holding)
  • The leader's signal state is cleanly positive. (supports the conclusion holding)

Stability combines the score gap, how broadly the evidence agrees, how steady the lead has been across daily snapshots, the current signal state on both names, and analyst dispersion on XLI.

How the comparison changed

120 daily snapshots · Jun 21 – Oct 20

XLI lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 14 to 8 points over 30 sessions.

Jun 21BA leads above the line · XLI leads belowOct 20
Today
XLI +8
46 vs 54
7 sessions ago
XLI +11
41 vs 52
30 sessions ago
XLI +14
38 vs 52
90 sessions ago
XLI +13
48 vs 61

The lead has not changed hands in this window.

AIQ Signal Divergence

Only the signals that bear on the head-to-head. A conflicted name is carrying bullish and bearish rules at the same time — the technical evidence is not pointing one way.

BAConflicted

1 bullish / 2 bearish, conflicted

Only BA

  • Death Cross Active — bearish, trend, long horizon (7.62%)
  • Downtrend Structure Active — bearish, trend, long horizon
XLI

2 bullish / 0 bearish / 2 neutral

Only XLI

  • Bollinger Band Squeeze — neutral, volatility, short horizon
  • Golden Cross Active — bullish, trend, long horizon (0.18%)
  • ATR Contraction - Coiling — neutral, volatility, short horizon (1.50%)

Both carry 1 more signal that do not separate them: MACD Bullish Crossover.

BA is conflicted, so the timing case there is weaker than the score alone suggests.

Price vs model alignment

Whether the latest session's price move confirms what the model did over the same session, or contradicts it.

BAConfirmed strength

Price and the AIQ Score both moved up over the latest session (price +0.95%, AIQ +1 points).

XLIConfirmed strength

Price and the AIQ Score both moved up over the latest session (price +0.91%, AIQ +2 points).

What would flip this result

A state, not a forecast. These are the specific, observable changes that would reverse the verdict — not a price prediction.

  1. 1BA closes the Quality gap — currently 26 points behind, the largest single contributor to XLI's edge.
  2. 2BA's Death Cross Active resolves — a bearish trend rule currently active against it.
  3. 3XLI's Golden Cross Active breaks down — it is the strongest rule currently supporting the verdict.
  4. 4The narrowing continues — the lead has already given back 6 points over 30 sessions, and a further 8-point move would eliminate XLI's advantage entirely.

The full evidence

Every number behind the verdict. The leader is called above each group so you are not left to solve it from the table.

Fundamentals

Split
MetricBAXLI
Revenue growth (YoY)10.5%—
EPS growth (YoY)-5.1%—
Gross margin4.7%—
Operating margin-5.4%—
Return on equity (TTM)104.8%—
Debt to equity7.52—

Performance

XLI leads 5 of 6 windows
MetricBAXLI
1 week (5 sessions)2.1%-1.1%
1 month (20 sessions)-3.7%-2%
3 months (63 sessions)-8.7%-6.7%
6 months (126 sessions)-13.1%-2.7%
Year to date-12.3%7.5%
1 year (252 sessions)-10.1%10%

Technicals

XLI has the stronger structure
MetricBAXLI
RSI (14)57.549.4
ADX (14)27.828
Price vs 50-day-5.6%-2.9%
Price vs 200-day-13.1%-3.6%
Volatility (1M, annualized)32.9%13.2%

Risk

XLI is the more resilient
MetricBAXLI
Beta1.230.93
Sharpe ratio-0.270.41
Sortino ratio-0.460.65
Max drawdown-26.9%-12.5%
Current drawdown-24.5%-10.6%
Annualized volatility34.1%17.1%
Value at risk (95%)-3.2%-1.6%

Straight answers

Each answer is regenerated from the current snapshot, not written once and left to age.

Which is better, BA or XLI?

On the Algovestiq AIQ Score, XLI is the stronger of the two as of Oct 21, 2026, scoring 54 against BA's 46. The edge comes from quality and risk resilience. BA is not without a case — it holds the better momentum profile, which matters more if that is the objective you are optimizing for. This is a systematic score, not a recommendation: it ranks the two on the same evidence, it does not know your holding period or tax position.

Is BA or XLI the better buy right now?

XLI carries the stronger systematic profile as of Oct 21, 2026, and the comparison is rated Competitive — 3 of 4 covered evidence groups agree. A Competitive rating means the two are close enough that your objective, not the score, should decide.

Why does the AIQ Score favor XLI over BA?

The composite weights Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk Resilience. XLI leads Quality by 26 points; XLI leads Risk Resilience by 25 points; BA leads Momentum by 10 points. Where the two split, the factor with the larger weight carries the result.

Which has more analyst upside, BA or XLI?

Analyst price targets imply +41.5% upside for BA and not covered for XLI. The model and the Street agree here, which is a broader base of evidence than either alone. Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions, and dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.

Which is better value, BA or XLI?

BA is the better-valued of the two on the peer-relative Value factor. BA on the peer-relative Value factor, by 4 points. The Value factor reads valuation relative to sector peers and to the company's own fundamental quality, so it is not the same as simply having the lower multiple.

Which has stronger growth, BA or XLI?

Growth figures are not covered for both names. Growth here is measured on reported revenue and earnings, not on forward estimates — it describes what the businesses have delivered, not what the Street expects next.

Which has stronger momentum, BA or XLI?

BA on the Momentum factor, by 10 points. Momentum is one of the four weighted factors in the AIQ composite. It has documented persistence over three- to twelve-month horizons, which makes it a timing input rather than a reason to hold something indefinitely.

Which is riskier, BA or XLI?

XLI is the more resilient of the two, so the other name carries the higher downside risk. XLI on Risk Resilience, by 25 points. Risk Resilience is a weighted factor in the composite; position sizing usually responds to it more usefully than the buy/avoid decision does.

Is BA more profitable than XLI?

Margin data is not comparable for both names in the current snapshot.

Is XLI's lead over BA getting stronger or weaker?

XLI lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 14 to 8 points over 30 sessions. This is measured from 120 daily comparison snapshots between 2026-06-21 and 2026-10-20. The lead has not changed hands in that window.

What would change the BA vs XLI verdict?

The result is a state, not a forecast, so it changes when the underlying evidence changes. Concretely: BA closes the Quality gap — currently 26 points behind, the largest single contributor to XLI's edge; BA's Death Cross Active resolves — a bearish trend rule currently active against it; XLI's Golden Cross Active breaks down — it is the strongest rule currently supporting the verdict; the narrowing continues — the lead has already given back 6 points over 30 sessions, and a further 8-point move would eliminate XLI's advantage entirely.

What do the current signals say about BA and XLI?

BA: 1 bullish / 2 bearish, conflicted. XLI: 2 bullish / 0 bearish / 2 neutral. A conflicted state means bullish and bearish rules are active on the same name at once — the technical evidence is not pointing one way, and a decision taken on it carries more timing risk. The most decision-relevant rule on BA is Death Cross Active (bearish, long horizon). On XLI it is Golden Cross Active (bullish, long horizon).

Continue your research

This page answers which of the two. These answer the questions on either side of it.

How this comparison is scored

The Algovestiq AIQ Score composites four factors — Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk, each carrying a fixed weight. Sentiment is reported separately as SentimentPulse and is not folded into the composite. Scores refresh every trading day, and this page regenerates from the latest snapshot rather than being written once.

The verdict names a leader, states how broadly six independent evidence groups agree, and rates how durable that conclusion is given the score gap, its recent trajectory and the current signal state on both names.

How to use side-by-side comparison →

This comparison is informational and educational, not investment advice. AIQ scores update daily; re-check after earnings, guidance or macro data that materially changes either name’s factor profile.