Alcon Inc. (ALC) Key Metrics
ALC valuation today
Trailing 12 months · as of October 18, 2026- Market cap
- $31.99B
- Enterprise value
- $35.65B
- P/E (TTM)
- 50.1 10-yr median 41.5
- Forward P/E
- 16.2
- PEG ratio
- 1.16
- Price / sales
- 2.9 10-yr median 4.1
- Price / book
- 1.5 10-yr median 1.8
- EV / EBITDA
- 13.1 10-yr median 21.8
- Dividend yield
- 0.54% $0.36 a year
- Beta
- 0.73
ALC key metrics, 2016–2025
Fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 · U.S. dollarsALC valuation Price multiples at each fiscal year-end price.
ALC returns How much profit the business earns on the capital it uses.
ALC per-share figures Results divided by the shares outstanding at year-end.
ALC financial health Debt, liquidity and how easily interest is covered.
ALC efficiency & capital use Working capital cycle and where the cash goes.
ALC valuation history
ALC returns on capital
Net income (ROE, ROA) or after-tax operating income (ROIC) divided by the average of the opening and closing balance.
ALC debt vs cash
Debt includes short- and long-term borrowings and, where reported, lease liabilities.
ALC cash returned to shareholders
ALC price vs earnings per share
ALC key metrics
2016–2025| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valuation | ||||||||||
| Market capitalization | $39.11B | $42.23B | $38.79B | $33.89B | $42.99B | $32.26B | $27.62B | — | — | — |
| Enterprise value | $42.74B | $45.54B | $42.82B | $37.98B | $45.89B | $35.19B | $30.57B | — | — | — |
| P/E ratio | 39.9 | 41.5 | 39.8 | 101.2 | 114.3 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Price / sales | 3.8 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 5.2 | 4.7 | 3.7 | — | — | — |
| Price / book | 1.8 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 2.2 | 1.7 | 1.4 | — | — | — |
| Price / free cash flow | 24.3 | 30.0 | 72.2 | 71.8 | 260.5 | 126.0 | 113.2 | — | — | — |
| Price / operating cash flow | 17.2 | 20.3 | 27.9 | 27.8 | 32.0 | 39.2 | 30.0 | — | — | — |
| EV / sales | 4.1 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 5.5 | 5.2 | 4.1 | — | — | — |
| EV / EBITDA | 17.1 | 17.0 | 19.1 | 21.8 | 26.1 | 29.8 | 24.3 | — | — | — |
| EV / free cash flow | 26.6 | 32.4 | 79.7 | 80.5 | 278.1 | 137.5 | 125.3 | — | — | — |
| Earnings yield | 2.5% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 1.0% | 0.9% | −1.6% | −2.4% | — | — | — |
| Free cash flow yield | 4.1% | 3.3% | 1.4% | 1.4% | 0.4% | 0.8% | 0.9% | — | — | — |
| Dividend yield | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.2% | — | — | — |
| Shareholder yield (dividends + buybacks) | 2.3% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | — | — | — |
| Share price at fiscal year-end | $78.81 | $84.89 | $78.12 | $68.55 | $87.12 | $65.98 | $56.57 | — | — | — |
| Per share | ||||||||||
| Revenue per share | $20.96 | $19.92 | $19.04 | $17.63 | $16.80 | $13.97 | $15.38 | $14.64 | $13.90 | $13.50 |
| Earnings per share | $1.98 | $2.05 | $1.96 | $0.68 | $0.76 | −$1.09 | −$1.34 | −$0.46 | $0.52 | −$0.35 |
| Operating cash flow per share | $4.58 | $4.17 | $2.80 | $2.46 | $2.73 | $1.68 | $1.88 | $2.33 | $2.49 | $2.55 |
| Free cash flow per share | $3.24 | $2.83 | $1.08 | $0.95 | $0.33 | $0.52 | $0.50 | $0.88 | $1.48 | $1.51 |
| Cash per share | $3.24 | $3.68 | $2.22 | $1.98 | $3.20 | $3.21 | $1.75 | $0.53 | $0.35 | $0.33 |
| Book value per share | $44.41 | $43.32 | $41.54 | $39.80 | $39.03 | $38.49 | $39.54 | $46.32 | $47.12 | $47.09 |
| Tangible book value per share | $7.60 | $8.08 | $5.31 | $2.06 | $3.21 | $1.68 | $0.34 | $6.26 | $5.31 | $3.57 |
| Dividends per share | $0.33 | $0.26 | $0.23 | $0.20 | $0.11 | $0.11 | $0.11 | $0.11 | — | — |
| Capex per share | $1.34 | $1.35 | $1.71 | $1.51 | $2.39 | $1.16 | $1.38 | $1.46 | $1.01 | $1.04 |
| Debt per share | $10.57 | $10.32 | $10.34 | $10.25 | $9.08 | $9.19 | $7.79 | $0.28 | $0.30 | $0.51 |
| Shares outstanding | 496.2M | 497.5M | 496.5M | 494.4M | 493.4M | 489.0M | 488.2M | 488.7M | 488.7M | 488.7M |
| Change in shares outstanding | −0.3% | +0.2% | +0.4% | +0.2% | +0.9% | +0.2% | −0.1% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Returns & profitability | ||||||||||
| Return on equity (ROE) | 4.5% | 4.8% | 4.8% | 1.7% | 2.0% | −2.8% | −3.1% | −1.0% | 1.1% | −0.7% |
| Return on invested capital (ROIC) | 4.5% | 4.6% | 4.3% | 2.1% | 2.4% | −1.7% | −0.7% | −0.9% | −0.3% | 0.0% |
| Return on assets (ROA) | 3.2% | 3.4% | 3.3% | 1.2% | 1.4% | −1.9% | −2.4% | −0.8% | 0.9% | −0.6% |
| Return on tangible assets | 7.4% | 7.9% | 8.4% | 3.2% | 3.6% | −5.5% | −7.7% | −3.0% | 3.7% | −2.6% |
| Free cash flow margin | 15.5% | 14.2% | 5.7% | 5.4% | 2.0% | 3.7% | 3.2% | 6.0% | 10.6% | 11.2% |
| Income quality (OCF / net income) | 2.32 | 2.04 | 1.43 | 3.63 | 3.58 | — | — | — | 4.76 | — |
| Financial health | ||||||||||
| Total debt | $5.25B | $5.14B | $5.13B | $5.07B | $4.48B | $4.50B | $3.80B | $136.0M | $149.0M | $249.0M |
| Cash & short-term investments | $1.61B | $1.83B | $1.10B | $980.0M | $1.58B | $1.57B | $855.0M | $258.0M | $172.0M | $162.0M |
| Net debt | $3.64B | $3.31B | $4.03B | $4.09B | $2.90B | $2.93B | $2.95B | −$122.0M | −$23.0M | $87.0M |
| Debt / equity | 0.24 | 0.24 | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.23 | 0.24 | 0.20 | 0.01 | 0.01 | 0.01 |
| Debt / assets | 0.17 | 0.17 | 0.17 | 0.17 | 0.16 | 0.16 | 0.14 | 0.01 | 0.01 | 0.01 |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 1.46 | 1.24 | 1.80 | 2.35 | 1.65 | 2.48 | 2.35 | −0.09 | −0.02 | 0.07 |
| Current ratio | 2.12 | 2.77 | 2.35 | 1.90 | 2.18 | 2.21 | 1.84 | 1.80 | 1.85 | 1.81 |
| Quick ratio | 1.33 | 1.77 | 1.39 | 1.13 | 1.41 | 1.48 | 1.19 | 1.03 | 1.12 | 1.09 |
| Interest coverage | 6.7 | 7.6 | 5.5 | 4.9 | 4.8 | -3.7 | -1.4 | -10.4 | -2.9 | 0.3 |
| Working capital | $3.40B | $4.03B | $3.25B | $2.46B | $2.91B | $2.73B | $1.94B | $1.51B | $1.51B | $1.35B |
| Invested capital | $25.67B | $24.86B | $24.66B | $23.77B | $22.16B | $21.75B | $22.25B | $22.52B | $23.01B | $23.10B |
| Tangible asset value | $3.77B | $4.02B | $2.64B | $1.02B | $1.59B | $820.0M | $167.0M | $3.06B | $2.59B | $1.75B |
| Net current asset value | −$3.07B | −$2.48B | −$3.34B | −$4.34B | −$3.36B | −$3.79B | −$4.12B | −$1.02B | −$1.07B | −$1.71B |
| Graham number | $44.42 | $44.66 | $42.82 | $24.63 | $25.87 | — | — | — | $23.57 | — |
| Graham net-net per share | −$10.60 | −$8.58 | −$10.70 | −$12.15 | −$10.18 | −$10.81 | −$11.49 | −$4.89 | −$4.90 | −$5.96 |
| Capital allocation | ||||||||||
| Dividends paid | $166.0M | $130.0M | $116.0M | $100.0M | $54.0M | $54.0M | $54.0M | $54.0M | — | — |
| Share buybacks (net) | $723.0M | $47.0M | $49.0M | $50.0M | $22.0M | $16.0M | — | — | — | — |
| Dividend payout ratio | 16.9% | 12.8% | 11.9% | 29.9% | 14.4% | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dividends + buybacks / free cash flow | 55.3% | 12.6% | 30.7% | 31.8% | 46.1% | 27.3% | 22.1% | 12.6% | — | — |
| Capex / revenue | 6.4% | 6.8% | 9.0% | 8.5% | 14.2% | 8.3% | 9.0% | 10.0% | 7.3% | 7.7% |
| Capex / operating cash flow | 29.2% | 32.3% | 61.3% | 61.2% | 87.7% | 68.9% | 73.5% | 62.5% | 40.7% | 40.6% |
| Capex / depreciation | 0.50 | 0.55 | 0.70 | 0.66 | 0.97 | 0.35 | 0.47 | 0.44 | 0.38 | 0.39 |
| Stock-based compensation / revenue | 1.6% | 1.5% | 1.5% | 1.6% | 1.7% | 1.5% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 1.0% | 0.8% |
| R&D / revenue | 9.5% | 8.8% | 9.1% | 8.1% | 10.2% | 9.8% | 8.7% | 8.2% | 8.6% | 7.6% |
| SG&A / revenue | 33.2% | 32.8% | 33.9% | 35.2% | 36.9% | 39.4% | 37.9% | 39.2% | 38.2% | 38.3% |
| Efficiency | ||||||||||
| Days sales outstanding | 70.6 | 73.1 | 74.8 | 75.0 | 67.4 | 79.6 | 70.9 | 74.6 | 78.5 | 77.5 |
| Days of inventory on hand | 182.6 | 190.4 | 192.2 | 184.3 | 177.7 | 147.6 | 139.7 | 126.4 | 127.7 | 123.4 |
| Days payables outstanding | 66.6 | 65.7 | 72.5 | 81.1 | 89.2 | 80.1 | 71.0 | 61.5 | 65.1 | 57.6 |
| Cash conversion cycle (days) | 186.6 | 197.8 | 194.5 | 178.2 | 155.8 | 147.1 | 139.7 | 139.5 | 141.1 | 143.3 |
| Receivables turnover | 5.17 | 5.00 | 4.88 | 4.87 | 5.42 | 4.59 | 5.15 | 4.89 | 4.65 | 4.71 |
| Payables turnover | 5.48 | 5.55 | 5.03 | 4.50 | 4.09 | 4.56 | 5.14 | 5.93 | 5.61 | 6.34 |
| Inventory turnover | 2.00 | 1.92 | 1.90 | 1.98 | 2.05 | 2.47 | 2.61 | 2.89 | 2.86 | 2.96 |
| Asset turnover | 0.34 | 0.33 | 0.32 | 0.30 | 0.30 | 0.25 | 0.27 | 0.26 | 0.25 | 0.24 |
| Average receivables | $2.01B | $1.98B | $1.94B | $1.79B | $1.53B | $1.49B | $1.46B | $1.46B | $1.46B | $1.40B |
| Average payables | $849.5M | $792.0M | $836.0M | $882.0M | $889.5M | $854.5M | $748.0M | $667.5M | $639.5M | $550.0M |
| Average inventory | $2.33B | $2.29B | $2.22B | $2.00B | $1.77B | $1.57B | $1.47B | $1.37B | $1.25B | $1.18B |
| Intangibles / total assets | 57.9% | 57.8% | 60.7% | 63.9% | 63.1% | 65.2% | 69.2% | 72.3% | 74.6% | 76.7% |
Computed from ALC's annual financial statements (latest annual report filed February 24, 2026) and the closing share price on each fiscal year-end, adjusted for stock splits. Figures in U.S. dollars; data from EODHD. Averages use the opening and closing balance of each year.
ALC valuation and financial ratios
At the end of fiscal 2025 (December 31, 2025), Alcon traded at 39.9 times earnings, against a 10-year median of 41.5. Based on the latest twelve months, the trailing P/E is 50.1 and the forward P/E is 16.2. Alcon earned a return on equity of 4.5% and a return on invested capital of 4.5% in fiscal 2025. It ended the year with $5.2 billion of debt and $1.6 billion in cash and short-term investments, net debt of $3.6 billion. It returned $889.0 million to shareholders: $166.0 million in dividends and $723.0 million in share buybacks, 55% of free cash flow.
See the ALC income statement, the ALC chart for price history, or the ALC stock overview for the latest quote and news.
ALC key metrics FAQ
What is Alcon's P/E ratio?
Alcon's trailing P/E ratio is 50.1 based on the last twelve months of earnings (as of October 18, 2026), and its forward P/E is 16.2. At the end of fiscal 2025 it was 39.9, compared with a 10-year median of 41.5.
What is Alcon's EV/EBITDA?
Alcon's enterprise value was 17.1 times EBITDA at the end of fiscal 2025 (enterprise value $42.7 billion, EBITDA $2.5 billion); the current EV/EBITDA is 13.1.
What is Alcon's return on equity?
Alcon's return on equity (ROE) was 4.5% in fiscal 2025: net income of $980.0 million on average shareholders' equity of $21.8 billion.
What is Alcon's ROIC?
Alcon's return on invested capital was 4.5% in fiscal 2025, using after-tax operating income divided by average debt plus equity minus cash.
How much debt does Alcon have?
Alcon had total debt of $5.2 billion at the end of fiscal 2025, a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24 and $3.6 billion of net debt (1.46 times EBITDA).
What is Alcon's dividend yield?
Alcon's forward dividend yield is 0.54%. Alcon paid $166.0 million in dividends in fiscal 2025 ($0.33 per share), a payout ratio of 16.9%.
Does Alcon buy back its shares?
Yes. Alcon spent $723.0 million on net share repurchases in fiscal 2025 Shares outstanding changed −0.3% over the year, to 496.2M..
What is Alcon's free cash flow yield?
Alcon generated $1.6 billion of free cash flow in fiscal 2025, a free cash flow yield of 4.1% on its market value at year-end ($39.1 billion).
What is Alcon's current ratio?
Alcon's current ratio was 2.12 at the end of fiscal 2025: current assets were 2.12 times current liabilities.