Dell vs United Airlines: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Dell reported $113.5B of revenue in FY2026 and $5.9B of net income. United Airlines reported $59.1B of revenue in FY2025 and $3.4B of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Dell
- Latest revenue
- $113.5B (FY2026)
- Net income
- $5.9B
- Net margin
- 5.2%
- Revenue growth
- +2.9% a year, FY2022–FY2026
United Airlines
- Latest revenue
- $59.1B (FY2025)
- Net income
- $3.4B
- Net margin
- 5.7%
- Revenue growth
- +5.5% a year, FY2016–FY2025
Financial summary
Dell
Dell's fiscal year ends in late January or early February. Revenue fell from $102.3 billion in fiscal 2023 to $88.4 billion in fiscal 2024 as post-pandemic PC demand faded, then recovered to $95.6 billion in fiscal 2025 and a record $113.5 billion in fiscal 2026, when net income reached $5.94 billion, operating cash flow topped $11 billion and $7.5 billion was returned to shareholders. Fiscal 2027 has accelerated: Q1 revenue was $43.8 billion (up 88%) and Q2 revenue was $47.0 billion (up 58%), with Q2 diluted EPS of $6.34. In September 2026 Dell raised full-year fiscal 2027 guidance to about $192 billion in revenue and $25.50 in non-GAAP EPS. The balance sheet still carries debt from the 2016 EMC deal, though leverage has fallen through the VMware spin-off and cash generation.
United Airlines
United's revenue grew from $43.3 billion in 2019 to a record $59.1 billion in 2025, and net income reached $3.4 billion in 2025 against $3.1 billion in 2024. Operating cash flow was $8.4 billion in 2025. In 2026 the story is fuel: after oil prices spiked in March, United cut full-year adjusted EPS guidance to $7-$11, then raised it to $9-$11 in July after Q2 revenue rose 16% to $17.7 billion and yields climbed 12%. Q2 fuel expense was up $2.3 billion (84%), and the company said it expected to recover all of the increase through fares by Q4. Management is targeting an investment-grade credit rating in 2026.
Revenue and profit by year
Dell
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $113.5B | $5.9B | 5.2% | +18.8% | Source |
| FY2025 | $95.6B | $4.6B | 4.8% | +8.1% | Source |
| FY2024 | $88.4B | $3.4B | 3.8% | -13.6% | Source |
| FY2023 | $102.3B | $2.4B | 2.4% | +1.1% | Source |
| FY2022 | $101.2B | $5.6B | 5.5% | — | Source |
United Airlines
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $59.1B | $3.4B | 5.7% | +3.5% | Source |
| FY2024 | $57.1B | $3.1B | 5.5% | +6.2% | Source |
| FY2023 | $53.7B | $2.6B | 4.9% | +19.5% | Source |
| FY2022 | $45B | $737M | 1.6% | +82.5% | Source |
| FY2021 | $24.6B | -$2B | -8.0% | +60.4% | Source |
| FY2020 | $15.4B | -$7.1B | -46.0% | -64.5% | Source |
| FY2019 | $43.3B | $3B | 7.0% | +4.7% | Source |
| FY2018 | $41.3B | $2.1B | 5.1% | +9.5% | Source |
| FY2017 | $37.7B | $2.1B | 5.7% | +3.2% | Source |
| FY2016 | $36.6B | $2.2B | 6.1% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
Dell
- Client SolutionsMajor
Revenue from commercial and consumer PCs, workstations, peripherals, and related support.
- Infrastructure SolutionsMajor
Revenue from servers, storage, networking, AI infrastructure, and data-center systems.
- Services, Support, and Financing
Supporting
Revenue from warranties, support contracts, deployment, managed services, and financing tied to hardware and infrastructure sales.
United Airlines
- Passenger tickets
- Premium cabins
- Basic Economy
- MileagePlus and co-brand revenue
- Cargo
- United Club memberships
- Baggage and seat fees
Business model and strategy
Dell
How it makes money
Dell makes money by selling hardware plus attached services and financing. The Infrastructure Solutions Group sells AI-optimized servers built around Nvidia (and some AMD) accelerators, traditional PowerEdge servers, networking and storage to enterprises, cloud service providers and governments; in Q2 fiscal 2027 ISG produced $31.8 billion of revenue and $4.8 billion of operating income.
Growth strategy
Dell's growth strategy has three parts. First, win AI infrastructure share by shipping GPU-dense, liquid-cooled rack systems (PowerEdge XE servers with Nvidia Blackwell-generation GPUs) to neoclouds, sovereign AI programs and large enterprises, packaged as the Dell AI Factory.
Competitive advantage
Dell's edge is breadth and scale in enterprise relationships. It can sell a customer everything from 10,000 laptops to a liquid-cooled GPU cluster with storage, networking, deployment and financing under one contract, and support it worldwide.
United Airlines
How it makes money
United makes money by filling a hub-and-spoke network. Domestic and regional flights feed passengers into seven U.S. hubs, where they connect to long-haul routes across the Atlantic, Pacific and Latin America. Ticket sales are the core: passenger revenue was $53.4 billion of the $59.1 billion total in 2025.
Growth strategy
United is investing in premium seating, larger aircraft, international routes, operational reliability, MileagePlus, airport clubs, digital service, Starlink connectivity, and network depth at core hubs.
Competitive advantage
United's advantage is its hub network, international route breadth, Star Alliance connectivity, premium-cabin expansion, MileagePlus loyalty base, corporate account strength, and major positions at airports such as Chicago O'Hare, Newark, Denver, Houston, San Francisco, Washington Dulles, and Los Angeles.
Questions about Dell vs United Airlines
Which company has higher revenue — Dell Technologies Inc. or United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Dell Technologies Inc. reported $113.5B (FY2026), while United Airlines Holdings, Inc. reported $59.1B (FY2025). By last reported revenue, Dell Technologies Inc. is the larger business, with United Airlines Holdings, Inc. reporting a smaller revenue base. Note: these are from different fiscal years and are not a direct like-for-like comparison.
What is the market cap of Dell Technologies Inc. vs United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Dell Technologies Inc.'s market capitalisation stands at $360.0B, while United Airlines Holdings, Inc.'s is $36.1B. Dell Technologies Inc. carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to United Airlines Holdings, Inc..
Which is more financially efficient — Dell Technologies Inc. or United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Dell Technologies Inc. generates $1.17M / employee in revenue per employee, while United Airlines Holdings, Inc. generates $522k / employee. Dell Technologies Inc. shows higher revenue efficiency per headcount, though this reflects business model differences — capital-light software companies routinely outperform labour-intensive manufacturers on this metric.
How do Dell Technologies Inc. and United Airlines Holdings, Inc. make money?
Dell Technologies Inc. and United Airlines Holdings, Inc. generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Dell Technologies Inc.: Dell makes money by selling hardware plus attached services and financing. United Airlines Holdings, Inc.: United makes money by filling a hub-and-spoke network.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Dell Technologies Inc. or United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Dell Technologies Inc. trades at 3.2x P/S and United Airlines Holdings, Inc. at 0.6x P/S. Dell Technologies Inc. commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to United Airlines Holdings, Inc.. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is Dell Technologies Inc. bigger than United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
By last reported revenue, Dell Technologies Inc. ($113.5B (FY2026)) is the larger company compared to United Airlines Holdings, Inc. ($59.1B (FY2025)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Dell vs United Airlines overview