Alcon Inc (ALC) stock analysis
Close on Nov 12, 2026Market cap $35.01BP/E 36.3Yield –
StockData Score
Prices as of Nov 11, 2026How the score works
Weak7 of 30 checks passed
Alcon passes 7 of the 30 checks behind our score; 18 could not be run for lack of data and count as not passed. Each dot in the shape is one check — hover it for the numbers.
- Valuation
- 0/6
- Growth
- 1/6
- Past performance
- 2/6
- Financial health
- 4/6
- Dividend
- 0/6
What stands out
Low debt
Debt is 21.9% of shareholders' equity, under the 40% we consider low.
EPS growing 10%+ a year
Diluted EPS grew 42.8% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Interest well covered
Operating income covers interest expense 6.7 times.
Debt covered by cash flow
Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 48.1% of total debt.
What to watch
Return on capital under 10%
Return on invested capital was 4.6%, below the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 6.1% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
Growing slower than the industry
Revenue grew 4.9% over the last twelve months; the Measuring, Analyzing, and Controlling Instruments; Photographic, Medical and Optical Goods; Watches and Clocks median is 8.0%.
Gross margin slipping
Gross margin was 55.2% over the last twelve months, against 55.6% a year earlier.
Valuation0/6
P/E against its history
Not enough price and earnings history to compare.
P/E against the industry
Needs positive earnings and enough profitable companies in the industry.
EV/EBITDA against its history
Needs positive EBITDA and price history.
P/B against the industry
Needs positive book value.
Price against fair value
We could not estimate a fair value: it needs at least two valuation methods with positive inputs.
Margin of safety
Depends on the fair value estimate.
Growth1/6
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 6.1% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
EPS growing 10%+ a year
Diluted EPS grew 42.8% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Earnings acceleration
Needs positive net income now, a year ago and five years ago.
Growing slower than the industry
Revenue grew 4.9% over the last twelve months; the Measuring, Analyzing, and Controlling Instruments; Photographic, Medical and Optical Goods; Watches and Clocks median is 8.0%.
Company guidance
No outlook found in earnings releases from the last twelve months.
Gross margin slipping
Gross margin was 55.2% over the last twelve months, against 55.6% a year earlier.
Past performance2/6
Return on equity
Needs positive equity and five years of results.
Return on capital under 10%
Return on invested capital was 4.6%, below the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.
Return on equity above the industry
Alcon's return on equity of 4.5% is above the Measuring, Analyzing, and Controlling Instruments; Photographic, Medical and Optical Goods; Watches and Clocks median of 1.0%.
Earnings over 5 years
Needs positive net income five years ago and in the latest year.
Net margin against its history
Needs five years of revenue and net income.
Net margin above the industry
Alcon's net margin of 9.4% is above the Measuring, Analyzing, and Controlling Instruments; Photographic, Medical and Optical Goods; Watches and Clocks median of 0.5%.
Financial health4/6
Low debt
Debt is 21.9% of shareholders' equity, under the 40% we consider low.
Debt trend
Needs a balance sheet from five years ago with positive equity.
Debt covered by cash flow
Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 48.1% of total debt.
Interest well covered
Operating income covers interest expense 6.7 times.
Short-term assets cover short-term debts
Current assets are 2.09 times current liabilities.
Bankruptcy risk (Altman Z)
Needs market value, working capital and retained earnings.
Dividend0/6
No dividend
Alcon has not paid a dividend in the last twelve months.
Yield against Treasuries
No dividend.
Yield against the market
No dividend.
Dividend stability
No dividend.
Earnings cover
No dividend.
Cash-flow cover
No dividend.
Fair value
How we estimate itWe don't publish a fair value for Alcon. It needs a US-dollar share price, at least two valuation methods with positive inputs (earnings, EBITDA, book value or sales) and, for companies with several share classes, classes that trade at the same price.
An estimate from reported numbers and market multiples, not a price target or investment advice. It can be far off for companies whose profits are about to change sharply.
Market risk
From the past year of daily prices.
Liquidity
Low risk
- Average value traded per day
- $145.64M
- Value traded per 1% price move
- $98.36M
Downside
Medium risk
- Typical loss in a bad month
- 18.8%
- Volatility (annualized)
- 29%
- Sharpe ratio, 1 year
- -0.24
- Beta to the S&P 500 (5Y)
- 0.82
Typical bad-month loss, week by week
Margins
Share of revenue, fiscal years 2006 to 2025
Gross margin
Operating margin
Net margin
Growth rates
Compound annual growth to fiscal 2025
| Per year | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years | Five-year pace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | +4.9% | +6.1% | +8.8% | – | |
| Gross profit | +4.2% | +6.6% | +14.3% | – | |
| Operating income | -3.8% | +26.5% | – | – | |
| Net income | -3.7% | – | – | – | |
| EPS, diluted | -3.4% | +42.8% | – | – | |
| Free cash flow | +7.7% | +43.8% | +38.1% | – |
Returns and balance sheet
10 fiscal years. Hover a measure to see how it is calculated.
| Measure | FY2016 | FY2020 | FY2025 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on assets | – | – | 3.2% | |
| Current ratio | – | 2.21 | 2.12 | |
| Debt to equity | – | – | 0.21 | |
| Interest coverage | – | -3.9× | 6.7× | |
| Inventory turnover | – | 2.5× | 2.0× | |
| Capex to revenue | – | 7.0% | 5.2% | |
| Diluted shares | – | 489M | 496M |
Where the cash went
Fiscal 2021 to 2025, five years combined
Alcon generated $8.30B from operations and spent $4.25B on capital expenditure, dividends and share buybacks. 71% of that went back into the business.
DuPont analysis
Return on equity split into margin, efficiency and leverage
| Fiscal year | Net margin | Asset turnover | Equity multiplier | Return on equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | 9.4% | 0.34× | 1.42× | 4.5% |
Piotroski F-Score
Nine tests of profitability, balance sheet and efficiency, fiscal 2025 against fiscal 2024
- ProfitableNet income above zero$980.00M
- Cash generatingOperating cash flow above zero$2.27B
- Return on assets improvedROA up on the prior year3.4% → 3.2%
- Earnings backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income$2.27B vs $980.00M
- Less leverageLong-term debt to assets fell15.0% → 13.2%
- Better liquidityCurrent ratio rose2.77 → 2.12
- No dilutionShare count did not rise498M → 496M
- Gross margin improvedGross margin up on the prior year55.61% → 55.24%
- More efficientAsset turnover rose0.33 → 0.34
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