Airlines have notoriously been a terrible sector to invest in, being capital hungry and fiercely competitive among other hazard, but represent some of the many international brands most easily remembered by those who enjoy travel as much as I do. Perhaps one reason we know their brands so well is because brand wars are so necessary in such a hyper-competitive industry.
For reference, below is a snapshot of the top 30 largest airlines by market cap (across major markets we trade) as of January 2017. The average ROA of these airlines over the past 5 years has been about 2% and the latest debt/equity ratio is around 1.5.
| RIC | Name | USD Market Cap (Millions) |
| DAL | Delta Air Lines Inc | $37,970 |
| LUV | Southwest Airlines Co | $31,580 |
| AAL.O | American Airlines Group Inc | $23,989 |
| UAL | United Continental Holdings Inc | $23,168 |
| RYAAY.O | Ryanair Holdings PLC | $18,306 |
| 0670.HK / CEA | China Eastern Airlines Corp Ltd | $12,235 |
| 0753.HK | Air China Ltd | $11,806 |
| ICAG.L | International Consolidated Airlines Group SA | $11,585 |
| ALK | Alaska Air Group Inc | $10,848 |
| 9201.T | Japan Airlines Co Ltd | $10,610 |
| 9202.T | ANA Holdings Inc | $9,534 |
| 1055.HK / ZNH | China Southern Airlines Co Ltd | $8,683 |
| SIAL.SI | Singapore Airlines Ltd | $8,115 |
| 600221.SS | Hainan Airlines Co Ltd | $8,048 |
| JBLU.O | JetBlue Airways Corp | $7,333 |
| LHAG.DE / DLAKY.PK | Deutsche Lufthansa AG | $6,224 |
| 0293.HK | Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd | $5,276 |
| LFL | Latam Airlines Group SA | $5,106 |
| EZJ.L | easyJet plc | $4,834 |
| QAN.AX | Qantas Airways Ltd | $4,488 |
| 603885.SS | JUNEYAO AIRLINES Co Ltd | $4,351 |
| 601021.SS | Spring Airlines Co Ltd | $4,279 |
| SAVE.O | Spirit Airlines Inc | $4,028 |
| CPA | Copa Holdings SA | $3,874 |
| HA.O | Hawaiian Holdings Inc | $3,091 |
| ALGT.O | Allegiant Travel Co | $2,748 |
| SKYW.O | SkyWest Inc | $1,938 |
| AIRF.PA / AFLYY.PK | Air France KLM SA | $1,630 |
| VAH.AX | Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd | $1,449 |
| VLRS.K | Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion SAB de CV | $1,319 |
As a bonus, I also include here a list of the top 20 largest airport operators in the world by market cap. By comparison with airlines, this sector has averaged 5.5% return on assets with a debt/equity ratio less than 0.5:
| RIC | Name | USD Market Cap (Millions) |
| AENA.MC | Aena SA | $20,652 |
| ADP.PA | Aeroports de Paris SA | $10,593 |
| SYD.AX | Sydney Airport Holdings Ltd | $9,827 |
| 600009.SS | Shanghai International Airport Co Ltd | $7,449 |
| MIC | Macquarie Infrastructure Corp | $6,656 |
| FRAG.DE | Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide | $5,479 |
| PAC | Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico SAB de CV | $4,461 |
| 0694.HK | Beijing Capital International Airport Co Ltd | $4,278 |
| ASR | Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SAB de CV | $4,249 |
| SATS.SI | SATS Ltd | $3,848 |
| BBA.L | BBA Aviation PLC | $3,630 |
| 9706.T | Japan Airport Terminal Co Ltd | $3,057 |
| SIAE.SI | Sia Engineering Company Ltd | $2,633 |
| 600004.SS | Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Co Ltd | $2,384 |
| VIEV.VI | Flughafen Wien AG | $2,079 |
| OMAB.O | Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte SAB de CV | $1,432 |
| GATE.S | Gategroup Holding AG | $1,386 |
| 0044.HK | Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Co Ltd | $1,124 |
| SAVE.MI | Save SpA | $1,016 |
| 600897.SS | Xiamen International Airport Co Ltd | $988 |
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