Pearson plc (PSO) Key Metrics
PSO key metrics, 2016–2025
Fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 · British poundsPSO returns How much profit the business earns on the capital it uses.
PSO financial health Debt, liquidity and how easily interest is covered.
PSO efficiency & capital use Working capital cycle and where the cash goes.
PSO returns on capital
Net income (ROE, ROA) or after-tax operating income (ROIC) divided by the average of the opening and closing balance.
PSO debt vs cash
Debt includes short- and long-term borrowings and, where reported, lease liabilities.
PSO cash returned to shareholders
PSO key metrics in British pounds
2016–2025| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Returns & profitability | ||||||||||
| Return on equity (ROE) | 8.5% | 10.8% | 9.0% | 5.6% | 4.2% | 7.8% | 6.0% | 13.8% | 9.7% | −43.4% |
| Return on invested capital (ROIC) | 9.3% | 9.4% | 7.7% | 4.2% | 3.9% | 7.0% | 5.4% | 12.0% | 8.8% | −31.9% |
| Return on assets (ROA) | 4.9% | 6.4% | 5.4% | 3.3% | 2.4% | 4.4% | 3.4% | 7.4% | 4.5% | −21.5% |
| Return on tangible assets | 9.5% | 11.2% | 10.4% | 5.9% | 3.9% | 7.0% | 5.6% | 12.0% | 8.2% | −35.3% |
| Free cash flow margin | 18.1% | 14.2% | 10.9% | 5.6% | 4.4% | 7.5% | 4.5% | 6.3% | 1.5% | 3.6% |
| Income quality (OCF / net income) | 2.06 | 1.44 | 1.39 | 1.49 | 1.84 | 1.18 | 1.40 | 0.79 | 0.73 | — |
| Financial health | ||||||||||
| Total debt | £1.48B | £1.47B | £1.16B | £1.24B | £1.40B | £1.65B | £1.68B | £720.0M | £1.08B | £2.47B |
| Cash & short-term investments | £332.4M | £543.0M | £312.0M | £558.0M | £937.0M | £1.10B | £437.0M | £568.0M | £526.0M | £1.47B |
| Net debt | £1.15B | £929.0M | £849.0M | £683.0M | £463.0M | £554.0M | £1.24B | £152.0M | £559.0M | £999.0M |
| Debt / equity | 0.41 | 0.36 | 0.29 | 0.28 | 0.33 | 0.40 | 0.39 | 0.16 | 0.27 | 0.57 |
| Debt / assets | 0.23 | 0.21 | 0.17 | 0.17 | 0.19 | 0.22 | 0.22 | 0.09 | 0.14 | 0.25 |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 1.04 | 0.83 | 0.77 | 0.73 | 0.62 | 0.67 | 1.96 | 0.20 | 0.74 | 3.01 |
| Current ratio | 2.00 | 1.85 | 1.73 | 1.91 | 2.04 | 2.03 | 2.13 | 1.58 | 1.49 | 2.12 |
| Quick ratio | 1.94 | 1.80 | 1.67 | 1.83 | 1.98 | 1.95 | 2.01 | 1.51 | 1.42 | 2.00 |
| Interest coverage | 8.9 | 6.8 | 8.2 | 3.9 | 2.7 | 5.2 | 3.3 | 6.1 | 5.7 | -42.3 |
| Working capital | £1.16B | £1.25B | £1.03B | £1.34B | £1.64B | £1.70B | £1.68B | £1.24B | £1.08B | £2.16B |
| Invested capital | £4.79B | £4.97B | £4.82B | £5.08B | £4.73B | £4.68B | £5.55B | £4.67B | £4.57B | £5.34B |
| Tangible asset value | £652.9M | £1.03B | £897.0M | £1.22B | £1.51B | £1.39B | £1.42B | £1.52B | £1.06B | £906.0M |
| Net current asset value | −£474.2M | −£111.0M | −£306.0M | −£91.0M | £158.0M | £23.0M | −£154.0M | −£4.0M | −£582.0M | −£1.63B |
| Capital allocation | ||||||||||
| Dividends paid | £156.5M | £156.0M | £154.0M | £156.0M | £149.0M | £146.0M | £147.0M | £136.0M | £318.0M | £424.0M |
| Share buybacks (net) | £414.7M | £358.0M | £221.0M | £390.0M | £16.0M | £182.0M | £52.0M | £153.0M | £149.0M | £27.0M |
| Dividend payout ratio | 47.8% | 35.9% | 40.7% | 64.5% | 84.2% | 44.2% | 55.7% | 23.1% | 78.3% | — |
| Dividends + buybacks / free cash flow | 88.4% | 102.2% | 94.0% | 255.1% | 110.0% | 128.6% | 113.1% | 110.3% | 707.6% | 273.3% |
| Capex / revenue | 0.8% | 3.5% | 3.4% | 3.8% | 5.1% | 3.9% | 5.0% | 4.8% | 5.1% | 5.4% |
| Capex / operating cash flow | 4.2% | 19.8% | 24.0% | 40.7% | 54.0% | 34.4% | 52.3% | 43.3% | 77.9% | 59.8% |
| Capex / depreciation | 0.05 | 0.24 | 0.23 | 0.24 | 0.43 | 0.42 | 0.50 | 0.79 | 0.74 | 0.08 |
| Stock-based compensation / revenue | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.1% | 0.9% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 0.6% | 0.9% | 0.7% | 0.5% |
| R&D / revenue | — | 8.2% | 7.7% | 7.9% | 8.1% | 8.2% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | — |
| SG&A / revenue | 20.5% | 21.2% | 20.9% | 21.4% | 23.4% | 24.0% | 43.7% | 45.3% | 48.1% | 49.1% |
| Efficiency | ||||||||||
| Days sales outstanding | 107.5 | 94.6 | 83.8 | 82.6 | 90.9 | 105.2 | 103.9 | 80.0 | 78.9 | 94.5 |
| Days of inventory on hand | 14.9 | 17.3 | 19.5 | 18.1 | 23.7 | 30.8 | 32.7 | 29.3 | 33.8 | 38.9 |
| Days payables outstanding | 139.7 | 61.8 | 66.0 | 62.3 | 72.2 | 72.1 | 65.7 | 54.1 | 52.8 | 56.9 |
| Cash conversion cycle (days) | -17.4 | 50.1 | 37.3 | 38.3 | 42.4 | 63.9 | 70.9 | 55.2 | 59.9 | 76.5 |
| Receivables turnover | 3.40 | 3.86 | 4.36 | 4.42 | 4.02 | 3.47 | 3.51 | 4.56 | 4.63 | 3.86 |
| Payables turnover | 2.61 | 5.90 | 5.53 | 5.85 | 5.06 | 5.06 | 5.55 | 6.75 | 6.91 | 6.42 |
| Inventory turnover | 24.55 | 21.10 | 18.77 | 20.16 | 15.39 | 11.86 | 11.16 | 12.46 | 10.79 | 9.39 |
| Asset turnover | 0.54 | 0.52 | 0.52 | 0.52 | 0.46 | 0.45 | 0.50 | 0.52 | 0.50 | 0.42 |
| Average receivables | £1.05B | £921.0M | £843.5M | £869.0M | £853.5M | £979.0M | £1.10B | £905.0M | £975.5M | £1.18B |
| Average payables | £657.1M | £295.0M | £332.5M | £349.5M | £345.5M | £349.0M | £334.5M | £288.0M | £299.0M | £326.0M |
| Average inventory | £69.9M | £82.5M | £98.0M | £101.5M | £113.5M | £149.0M | £166.5M | £156.0M | £191.5M | £223.0M |
| Intangibles / total assets | 46.6% | 43.9% | 45.9% | 43.5% | 37.7% | 36.8% | 37.9% | 38.1% | 37.6% | 34.2% |
Computed from PSO's annual financial statements (latest annual report filed March 13, 2026) and the closing share price on each fiscal year-end, adjusted for stock splits. Figures in British pounds; data from EODHD. Averages use the opening and closing balance of each year.
PSO valuation and financial ratios
Pearson earned a return on equity of 8.5% and a return on invested capital of 9.3% in fiscal 2025. It ended the year with £1.5 billion of debt and £332.4 million in cash and short-term investments, net debt of £1.1 billion. It returned £571.2 million to shareholders: £156.5 million in dividends and £414.7 million in share buybacks, 88% of free cash flow.
See the PSO income statement, the PSO chart for price history, or the PSO stock overview for the latest quote and news.
PSO key metrics FAQ
What is Pearson's return on equity?
Pearson's return on equity (ROE) was 8.5% in fiscal 2025: net income of £327.7 million on average shareholders' equity of £3.8 billion.
What is Pearson's ROIC?
Pearson's return on invested capital was 9.3% in fiscal 2025, using after-tax operating income divided by average debt plus equity minus cash.
How much debt does Pearson have?
Pearson had total debt of £1.5 billion at the end of fiscal 2025, a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41 and £1.1 billion of net debt (1.04 times EBITDA).
Does Pearson buy back its shares?
Yes. Pearson spent £414.7 million on net share repurchases in fiscal 2025.
What is Pearson's current ratio?
Pearson's current ratio was 2.00 at the end of fiscal 2025: current assets were 2.00 times current liabilities.