Pearson Plc Common Stock (PSO)

FairStock Score: 47/100 — MIXED

Key Financials

AI Analysis

AI-generated, general educational analysis — not personal investment advice.

I look at Pearson as a global education publisher and assessment provider with five segments, including Assessment & Qualifications, Virtual Learning, English Language Learning, Enterprise Learning & Skills, and Higher Education. The institutional nature of assessments and qualifications can create some switching costs, but the numbers suggest no wide moat: FairStock shows ROE of 9.16% and ROCE of 5.09%. On the 2026-10-13 close of $17.40, the P/E is 25.97 and P/B is 2.36. The Graham Number is only $9.16, so the margin of safety is -89.96%. That is not a bargain; I am paying a rich price for modest returns. Financial health is mixed: D/E is 0.52, Altman Z-Score is 2.02, and Piotroski F-Score is 2/9, which is weak. The 2.21% dividend yield and beta of -0.03 are defensive features, but they do not fix the core issue. Growth trajectory is unclear from the data: revenue and profit growth are N/A, and FairStock cannot assign a Lynch category because only 0 years of filed results are available when 3 are needed. The 52-week range is $12.02-$17.75, so the shares are near the top of that range. FairStock Score is 47/100. I would need to see better returns on capital, lower leverage, and a more reasonable price before calling this a value opportunity.

In plain English: Pearson sells educational materials, tests, and learning services to schools, companies, and students around the world. Its profits and returns look modest, and it carries a fair amount of debt. At $17.40, the shares look expensive compared with the profits and assets shown, and there is no obvious bargain.

The full AI analysis, bull and bear case and key monitorables are in FairStock Pro.

Data as of 2026-10-13 close · note generated 2026-10-15 · model deepseek-flash

Fundamentals from company filings and market-data providers; prices are end-of-day, not real-time. AI-generated analysis is general and educational — not personal investment advice. Scoring methodology · Score test · Disclaimer