Bringing the fundamentals into focus…
Back to Pearson plc
How Pearson plc stacks up
PSO · against 72 other Communication Services companies of similar size
Profitability
63/ 100
Below the middle of the pack.
Ranked #46 of 73 · scores higher than 36% of peers
Bars: peers in each 10-point band of the profitability score11 peers with a profitability score of 60–69, including PSO · Click a bar to see the companies
Why profitability scores 63?
Weighted metrics compared with all Communication Services companies.Mainly thanks to its return on assets and operating margin, which are stronger than most Communication Services peers.
- Return on invested capital is close to the peer norm. Return on invested capital: 8.4% vs peer median 6.0%
- a wider operating margin: stronger than 67% of peers. Operating margin: 14.2% vs peer median 8.2%
- a higher return on assets: stronger than 70% of peers. Return on assets: 5.2% vs peer median 2.7%
Metric by metric
Position: dot = PSO, ranked from the worst peer (left) to the best (right); tick = middle, shaded = middle half of peers.| Metric | PSO | Peer median | Better than | Position among peers | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on invested capitalHigher is better · 67 reported | 8.4% | 11.5% | 38% | 33% | |
| Operating marginHigher is better · 73 reported | 14.2% | 18.6% | 38% | 33% | |
| Return on assetsHigher is better · 70 reported | 5.2% | 5.2% | 49% | 33% | |
| Return on equityHigher is better · 68 reported | 9.2% | 11.1% | 42% | Context only | |
| Gross marginHigher is better · 74 reported | 52.0% | 55.5% | 38% | Context only |
Ranking by profitability score
Top 5 and the companies ranked around PSO| Rank | Company | Market cap | Profitability | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.62T JPY (≈$11.0B) | 100 | 79 | |
| 2 | 4.2B GBP (≈$5.4B) | 99 | 68 | |
| 2 | 21.7B AUD (≈$14.4B) | 99 | 65 | |
| 4 | 18.5B USD | 96 | 81 | |
| 5 | 1.08T JPY (≈$7.4B) | 95 | 67 | |
| 42 | 17.6B USD | 66 | 64 | |
| 44 | 990.1B JPY (≈$6.7B) | 65 | 56 | |
| 45 | 442.3B THB (≈$12.4B) | 64 | 39 | |
| 46 | 10.4B GBP (≈$13.6B) | 63 | 50 | |
| 46 | 10.3B USD | 63 | 50 | |
| 48 | 65.5B BRL (≈$11.8B) | 62 | 46 | |
| 49 | 17.3B USD | 61 | 48 | |
| 49 | 10.4B USD | 61 | 59 | |
| 51 | 192.8B SEK (≈$19.3B) | 58 | 37 |
Scores are sector-relative percentiles from the latest snapshot, always calculated against the whole sector: narrowing the comparison group changes who you compare with, not the scores. Missing metrics are left out and the remaining weights rescaled. How we score