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AGING Analysis Report
Sep 17, 2026
20 days ago · 100% complete
For AI assistants & researchers — machine-readable summary of this page

What this page is: Delvantic's full research page for Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. (ALSN) — AI-driven forensic equity research: mechanical valuation models (DCF, EPV, anchored-PE, scenario) plus three independent AI lenses (Quality / Value / Sentiment). Everything below is rendered server-side; you are not missing content that requires JavaScript. All scores are predictions and research opinions, not financial advice.

Our current read (analysis of 2026-10-07): Designation Watch · Gem Score +0 (−100…+100 Quality+Value blend) · Quality 0 · Value 0 · Sentiment -29 (timing only, not weighted)

Page map (sections in order; each card carries a stable reference-name attribute you can cite):

  • profile-header / price-overview — company profile, live quote, market cap
  • extended-analysis — the core: three AI lens reads with findings, scores, and the analyst memo
  • future-predictions — our forward price-band predictions
  • market-narrative / ai-findings / gpt-critique — narrative context, cross-model findings, and an adversarial critique of our own analysis (near the end of the document)
  • Members-only sections (render as login gates for anonymous readers): price-history, income-trend, key-metrics, financials (statement tables), insider-trading. The analysis above is public; the raw data tables require a free account.

More for machine readers: site briefing at /llms.txt · any ticker resolves at delvantic.com/stock/TICKER · raw inputs are public-company filings and market data (via licensed data feeds); every model, score, lens read, and prediction on this page is Delvantic's own analysis.

Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc.

ALSN NYSE
Consumer Cyclical · Auto Parts
Indianapolis, IN 46222, United States allisontransmission.com Updated Sep 17, 4:39pm
Price
$119.72
Market Cap
$9.9B
Employees
4,000
Beta
0.97
Avg Volume
684,591
Last Dividend
$1.14
CEO
Mr. David S. Graziosi CPA

Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. is a global manufacturer of propulsion solutions for commercial and defense vehicles. The company designs and produces fully automatic transmissions, electrified propulsion systems, and related drivetrain technologies used in medium- and heavy-duty trucks, buses, motorhomes, off-highway equipment, and military vehicles. Allison Transmission also supports its installed base through an extensive aftermarket network that provides genuine parts, service, and technical support across multiple regions. Its products are widely used by original equipment manufacturers and fleet operators that rely on durable, high-performance transmission systems for demanding applications. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, Allison Transmission focuses on serving transportation, construction, energy, mining, and defense markets with specialized powertrain solutions.

Runs with full report Generated: Sep 17, 2026 4:42pm
Price Overview
Price at report time
$119.72
as of Sep 17, 4:39pm (20d ago)
Change · Sep 17
+1.08 (+0.91%)
Day Range
$118.18 – $121.49
52-Week Range
$76.01 – $137.62
50-Day MA
$122.29
200-Day MA
$116.39
Volume
55,637.00
Right now · live
Log in to get the live feed
Members see the real-time price and the move since this report (over 20d).
Share Structure
Outstanding 82,665,641.00
Float 81,808,411.00
Free Float 99.0%
High free float — 99.0% of shares trade freely, ~1% held by insiders/institutions
Very liquid — most shares trade freely. Low insider ownership can mean less management alignment, but makes large position sizing straightforward.
Price History (1 Year)
Last updated: Sep 17, 2026 4:48pm (20d ago)
Revenue & Net Income Trend
The directional story — useful even when net income is negative.
Last updated: Sep 11, 2026 10:53am (26d ago)
Revenue
The top line — total sales before any costs or taxes are subtracted. A measure of how much business the company is doing.
Net Income
The bottom line — profit left after subtracting all expenses, interest, and taxes from revenue. Reflects accounting profitability, but includes non-cash items like depreciation, so it isn't the same as cash earned.
Operating Cash Flow
The real cash generated by the day-to-day business — selling products, paying suppliers, collecting from customers. Calculated from net income by adding back non-cash items and adjusting for timing (unpaid bills, unsold inventory). When OCF consistently lags net income, the reported profit may not be converting to real money.
Period Revenue Net Income Net Margin YoY/QoQ
Key Metrics TTM · through Jun 30, 2026
TD Twelve Data statement HEX SEC filing
Industry comparison last run: Sep 17, 2026 4:42pm
P/E · trailing (TTM) (Price per dollar of earnings over the past year — not a run-rate or forward P/E)
HEX
Stock Price / EPS (Diluted)
19.01
Stock Price: $119.72
EPS (Diluted): 6.30
P/B Ratio (Price vs net asset value)
HEX
Stock Price / Book Value Per Share
5.08
Stock Price: $119.72
Total Equity: $1.98B
Shares: 84,000,000
EV/EBITDA (Total value vs operating profit)
HEX
Enterprise Value / EBITDA
13.25
Market Cap: $9.89B
Total Debt: $4.15B
Cash: $399.00M
EBITDA: $1.04B
Enterprise Value (Takeover price (cap + debt - cash))
HEX
Market Cap + Total Debt - Cash
$13.8B
Market Cap: $9.89B
Total Debt: $4.15B
Cash: $399.00M
Gross Margin (Revenue left after direct costs)
HEX
Gross Profit / Revenue
36.4%
Gross Profit: $1.60B
Revenue: $4.40B
Operating Margin (Revenue left after all operations)
HEX
Operating Income / Revenue
19.6%
Operating Income: $861.00M
Revenue: $4.40B
Net Margin (Revenue left as actual profit)
HEX
Net Income / Revenue
12.0%
Net Income: $529.00M
Revenue: $4.40B
ROE (Profit from shareholder equity)
HEX
Net Income / Total Equity
28.3%
Net Income: $529.00M
Total Equity: $1.98B
ROIC (Profit from all invested capital)
HEX
NOPAT / Invested Capital
11.5%
Operating Income: $861.00M
Tax Rate: 23.2%
Equity: $1.98B
Total Debt: $4.15B
Cash: $399.00M
Current Ratio (Can it pay short-term bills)
HEX
Current Assets / Current Liabilities
1.81
Current Assets: $2.39B
Current Liabilities: $1.32B
Debt/Equity (Leverage — debt vs equity)
HEX
Total Debt / Total Equity
2.10
Short-Term Debt: $20.00M
Long-Term Debt: $4.13B
Total Debt: $4.15B
Total Equity: $1.98B
Rev/Share (Top-line per share)
HEX
Revenue / Shares Outstanding
$52.40
Revenue: $4.40B
Shares: 84,000,000
Book Value/Share (Net assets per share)
HEX
(Total Assets - Total Liabilities) / Shares
$23.56
Total Equity: $1.98B
Shares: 84,000,000
FCF/Share (Real cash generated per share)
HEX
(Operating Cash Flow + CapEx) / Shares
$8.77
Operating CF: $939.00M
CapEx: -$202.00M
Shares: 84,000,000
CapEx is negative (outflow) — added to OCF to get FCF
Div Yield (Annual income from holding)
TD
Last Annual Dividend / Stock Price
1.0%
Last Dividend: $1.14
Stock Price: $119.72
Payout Ratio (Earnings paid out as dividends)
HEX
Dividends Paid / Net Income
17.8%
Dividends Paid: -$94.00M
Net Income: $529.00M
Industry Benchmarks
Last run: Sep 17, 2026 4:42pm
Compares ALSN against LLM-researched typical ranges for its industry. One research call per industry, cached indefinitely — every stock in the same industry reuses the same baseline.
Income Statement (Annual)
Last updated: Sep 11, 2026 10:53am (26d ago)
Metric 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Revenue $2.4B $2.8B $3.0B $3.2B $3.0B
Cost of Revenue $1.3B $1.5B $1.6B $1.7B $1.5B
Gross Profit $1.1B $1.3B $1.5B $1.5B $1.5B
Operating Expenses $476.0M $513.0M $551.0M $537.0M $583.0M
Operating Income $669.0M $784.0M $919.0M $992.0M $880.0M
Net Income $442.0M $531.0M $673.0M $731.0M $623.0M
EBITDA $773.0M $893.0M $1.0B $1.1B $997.0M
EPS $4.13 $5.53 $7.48 $8.40 $7.42
EPS (Diluted) $4.13 $5.53 $7.40 $8.31 $7.33
Balance Sheet (Annual)
Last updated: Sep 11, 2026 10:53am (26d ago)
Metric 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Cash & Equivalents $127.0M $232.0M $555.0M $781.0M $1.5B
Total Current Assets $671.0M $866.0M $1.3B $1.5B $2.2B
Total Assets $4.5B $4.7B $5.0B $5.3B $6.1B
Current Liabilities $459.0M $480.0M $501.0M $506.0M $460.0M
Long-Term Debt $2.5B $2.5B $2.5B $2.4B $2.9B
Total Liabilities $3.8B $3.8B $3.8B $3.7B $4.2B
Total Equity $634.0M $874.0M $1.2B $1.7B $1.9B
Retained Earnings -$1.1B -$953.0M -$628.0M -$239.0M -$38.0M
Cash Flow (Annual)
Last updated: Sep 11, 2026 10:53am (26d ago)
Metric 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Operating Cash Flow $635.0M $657.0M $784.0M $801.0M $836.0M
Capital Expenditure -$175.0M -$167.0M -$125.0M -$143.0M -$175.0M
Free Cash Flow $460.0M $490.0M $659.0M $658.0M $661.0M
Acquisitions (net) — — — — —
Net Debt Issued / (Repaid) — — $0 $0 $500.0M
Dividends Paid -$81.0M -$80.0M -$83.0M -$87.0M -$91.0M
Stock Buybacks -$513.0M -$278.0M -$263.0M -$254.0M -$328.0M
Net Change in Cash -$183.0M $105.0M $323.0M $226.0M $714.0M
Growth Trends (YoY %)
Last updated: Sep 11, 2026 10:53am (26d ago)
Metric 2022 2023 2024 2025
Revenue Growth +15.3% +9.6% +6.3% -6.7%
Gross Profit Growth +13.3% +13.3% +4.0% -4.3%
Operating Income Growth +17.2% +17.2% +7.9% -11.3%
Net Income Growth +20.1% +26.7% +8.6% -14.8%
EBITDA Growth +15.5% +15.1% +7.3% -9.6%
Dividend History (Last 20)
Last updated: Sep 17, 2026 4:39pm (20d ago)
Date Dividend Declaration Record Payment
2026-08-21 $0.29 — — —
2026-05-18 $0.29 — — —
2026-03-09 $0.29 — — —
2025-11-21 $0.27 — — —
2025-08-20 $0.27 — — —
2025-05-19 $0.27 — — —
2025-03-03 $0.27 — — —
2024-11-18 $0.25 — — —
2024-08-19 $0.25 — — —
2024-05-17 $0.25 — — —
2024-03-01 $0.25 — — —
2023-11-10 $0.23 — — —
2023-08-11 $0.23 — — —
2023-05-12 $0.23 — — —
2023-03-03 $0.23 — — —
2022-11-18 $0.21 — — —
2022-08-19 $0.21 — — —
2022-05-13 $0.21 — — —
2022-03-04 $0.21 — — —
2021-11-19 $0.19 — — —
0Company Classification 1Industry Landscape 2Company Momentum 3Forward Projection 4aDCF Valuation 4bEarnings Power Value 4cAnchored PE 4dReverse DCF 4eRevenue-Based DCF 4fAnchored P/S 4gScenario Analysis 4hDividend Discount Model 4iBook Value Analysis 4jInsider Activity 4fCash Flow Quality 4gDebt Maturity Risk 4hMacro Environment 4iSector Intelligence 4jRevenue Confidence 4kSensitivity Analysis 4lSector Demand Cycle 5AI Investigation 5bThesis Evaluation 6Valuation Synthesis
computed not applicable not yet run 12 computed · 6 not applicable · 6 not yet run
Risk : Reward — upside vs downside from this company's own quarters
Not computed yet
Why there is no ratio: Risk:reward has not been computed for this name yet — its report predates the mechanical valuation chain. It is added, at $0, the next time a report or the nightly touches this ticker.
Narrative Economics
The story the market is telling about this stock — the intangible X-factor (founder mythology, cult dynamics, TAM-of-imagination) that moves price beyond what cash flows alone explain. After Shiller, Narrative Economics.
No narrative profile yet for ALSN — it's generated by the pipeline (market-narrative step).
Growth Outlook
Analyzed 2026-09-17 16:51

The question every valuation on this page silently assumes: is this company likely to grow? Judged forward — the business, its category, the world — against what's already printed.

Growing Reported revenue is stepping up sharply on the off-highway acquisition, but operating income (-3.8%) and net income (-24.3%) falling on +88% revenue show the growth is bought, not earned — the underlying vocational/on-highway core is flat-to-soft, so the durable call is modest growth in earnings power, not the mechanical 46.7% on file. conf 6/10
Share gain Category flat · Category revenue is roughly flat-to-shrinking (industry CAGR -0.6%, category median recent growth -4.8%) with margins compressing industry-wide; Allison's reported revenue is up 88% matched-quarter and 37.6% YoY, so it is massively outgrowing the category on the top line — but almost entirely by acquisition, not by organic share capture. Organic on-highway volume is likely flat-to-down in line with the truck cycle, while aftermarket and defense hold better than peers. Notably, Allison's earnings direction (-24% net income) is the same direction as the category's (-7.3% earnings CAGR), confirming the margin squeeze is shared.
Next 2 quarters
Growing
The next two prints still carry incremental acquisition contribution versus prior-year periods, so reported revenue growth stays clearly positive even as the optical rate collapses from +88% toward the teens as the deal laps. Earnings are the question, not revenue: interest and amortization keep net income growth negative-to-flat, partially offset by aftermarket pricing and early synergy capture. Directionally growing, but decelerating.
↑ above expectations
Year 1
Growing
Full-period consolidation of the acquired off-highway platform mechanically lifts FY revenue well above the prior year, with defense backlog and aftermarket providing a floor against soft Class 8 and vocational build rates. Earnings should inflect from decline to flat-or-modestly-up as synergies land and one-time deal costs annualize out, but industry-wide margin compression (-4.4pp operating over three years) argues against margin expansion in the FY.
≈ inline with expectations
Years 2–3
Growing
Structural earnings power should be higher, not lower, in two to three years: the acquired off-highway business was consolidated into a soft mining/construction capex environment and mean-reverts upward; the enlarged installed base compounds the high-margin aftermarket annuity; defense programs are funded multi-year; and electrification of vocational duty cycles remains slow enough not to bite. Against that, a flat category, industry margin compression and leverage keep the growth modest — mid single digits in earnings power, lifted somewhat per-share by cash deployment. Not Accelerating: there is no mechanism for the growth rate itself to rise once the deal laps.
↑ above expectations
The creme: each rung's call measured against what's already printed (vs analyst estimates · vs guidance / FY consensus · vs price-implied growth) — expectations in print are already in the price, so only the variant margin can pay. Hover a rung's chip for the margin read.
Growth drivers
68 Acquisition-driven scale and end-market diversification — The +88.1% matched-quarter revenue jump and +37.6% recent YoY are far too large to be organic in a mature transmission business; they reflect consolidation of an acquired off-highway/drivetrain platform. This adds mining, construction and agriculture exposure alongside on-highway vocational, broadens the aftermarket installed base, and gives a genuinely larger revenue base to grow from into FY1 as the period consolidates fully.
49 Sticky aftermarket and pricing on an installed base — Allison's genuine-parts/service channel is tied to a multi-decade installed base of fully automatic transmissions with no drop-in substitute; this revenue recurs independent of new-truck build rates and carries above-corporate margin. It is the mechanism that keeps revenue from tracking the freight cycle one-for-one and explains why EPS has beaten in 3 of the last 4 prints despite soft industry conditions.
33 Defense and off-highway program demand — Tracked and wheeled military vehicle propulsion is a multi-year, budget-funded backlog business with rising global defense appropriations — a demand stream that is uncorrelated with commercial truck cycles and carries long program tails. Small as a share of revenue but a positive offset precisely when on-highway is weak.
35 Slower-than-feared electrification of medium/heavy vocational — Vocational, refuse, motorhome and off-highway duty cycles remain poorly served by battery-electric drivelines, and commercial EV mandates have slipped. That extends the runway for the legacy fully automatic product far beyond what the bear framing assumes, protecting both OEM fitment and the aftermarket annuity.
24 Per-share leverage from cash generation — FCF CAGR of +4.1% against negative earnings CAGR implies cash conversion holds up through the earnings dip; historically deployed into repurchase, which converts flat net income into positive EPS growth — visible in EPS beats (2.73 vs 2.61, 2.57 vs 2.10).
Growth risks
65 Growth is not reaching the bottom line — Revenue +88.1% with operating income -3.8% and net income -24.3% is the single most important fact in the file: the acquired mix is lower-margin, and amortization plus deal financing costs are absorbing the incremental gross profit. Earnings CAGR is -12.1% over the multi-year record. Until synergies and deleveraging show up, revenue growth is optically large and economically thin — which is why the mechanical +46.7% projection should be discounted heavily.
45 Category is flat-to-declining with industry-wide margin compression — Auto parts industry revenue CAGR -0.6%, category median recent growth -4.8%, operating margins -4.4pp and net margins -2.5pp over three years, industry earnings CAGR -7.3%. This is a pricing-and-cost squeeze affecting suppliers broadly (tariffed inputs, OEM cost recovery pressure), and it caps how much of Allison's scale advantage converts to margin expansion.
44 North America truck and freight cycle softness — Class 8 and vocational build rates plus a weak freight backdrop directly gate on-highway fitment volume; the same weakness hits off-highway via deferred mining/construction capex. Macro headwinds with a 10y near 5% and a nearly flat curve (0.33) keep fleet replacement and equipment financing expensive.
33 Integration and leverage risk on the deal — A large acquisition into an unfamiliar off-highway channel brings synergy-timing risk, working-capital drag and interest expense that is already visible in the net income decline. If synergy capture slips, FY1 and FY2 earnings stay flat while the revenue base looks impressive.
23 Long-run propulsion substitution — Structural electrification of medium-duty and bus applications erodes transmission content per vehicle eventually; Allison's electrified offering is not yet a demonstrated share-taker. This is a years-5+ risk, not a next-8-quarters risk, but it caps terminal growth assumptions.
Macro is a headwind for a capital-goods-adjacent supplier: 10y near 5% and a nearly flat curve (0.33) raise fleet and equipment financing costs and defer replacement cycles; tariffed steel, aluminum and components pressure input cost recovery across the supplier base. Offsets are real and company-specific: rising global defense budgets fund multi-year propulsion programs, and the slippage of commercial EV mandates extends the economic life of the legacy fully automatic franchise in vocational duty cycles. Infrastructure and mining capex are the swing factor for the newly acquired off-highway exposure — currently soft, which means the acquisition was consolidated near a cyclical trough rather than a peak.
Growth position composite +1
ShrinkingStallingHoldingGrowingAccelerating
70Next 2 quarters · Growing
70Year 1 · Growing
70Years 2–3 · Growing
+1Composite (−100…+100)
A research prediction, not advice. Forward-graded: each rung is scored against the prints that follow it. Not an input to the GEM designation — track record first.
Claude Reading
Independent analyst synthesis · claude-opus-4-7 · generated 2026-09-17 16:47:22
Verdict Modestly undervalued at $119.72 — fair value $135–155 on clean 2025 numbers; reject the synthesis $212 target as built on corrupted quarterly data. Starter position only, contingent on verifying the Q1/Q2 2026 revenue doubling.

The quarterly print is where I have to start, because the models are papering over something ugly. Q1 2026 revenue of $1.41B and Q2 2026 of $1.57B are roughly double every prior quarter shown ($693M–$824M range), while net income collapsed to 8% and 11.6% margins versus a steady 22–25% through 2024–early 2025. Either Allison closed a transformative acquisition (doubling the top line, dragging margins), the data is mis-stitched, or there's a restatement/reporting change. No standalone auto-parts business goes from $814M to $1.41B to $1.57B in two quarters organically. The "revenue_cagr 18.9%" and "recent_revenue_yoy 37.6%" figures the momentum engine is citing are almost certainly a data artifact — and the synthesis composite fair value of $254 (implying +77% upside) is being pulled higher by the same artifact via extrapolated revenue and cash flow. That number should be discarded.

Working from the clean annual data instead: 2025 revenue $3.01B (down 6.8% from $3.23B in 2024), NI $623M (down from $731M), FCF $661M. On $9.89B market cap that's a 6.7% FCF yield and 15.9x earnings on 2025 actuals — not a screaming bargain, not expensive, exactly where a mature industrial with modest secular headwinds should trade. ROE of 28% and ROIC of 11.5% are real and reflect the transmission monopoly economics. Leverage at $2.89B debt vs $1.50B cash and $836M OCF is manageable (net debt/EBITDA around 1.2x), not the "dangerous leverage" the Market Forces model dramatizes. The Market Forces "structural margin collapse" call is contradicted by 2025's 29.2% operating margin — the collapse it's pointing at is the corrupted quarterly data.

The thesis evaluation (-3, essentially a coin flip) is the most honest output here. The Narrative layer correctly identifies this as an EV-transition-timing bet with fragile durability — a single major OEM electrification delay or an eGen contract win re-rates the stock. Contrarian point the bulls should sit with: Class 8 truck electrification has repeatedly slipped, Allison's defense and motorhome mix (~25% combined) is genuinely non-cyclical and non-electrifying on any relevant timeframe, and management has been aggressively buying back stock (equity shrinking supports the 5.1x P/B and 28% ROE). Contrarian point the bears should sit with: earnings CAGR of -12% and 2025 revenue decline are real, not narrative — the melting has started, and terminal value in a DCF is doing enormous work for a business whose core product line has a defined obsolescence path. The synthesis's $212 signal-adjusted fair value implicitly assumes the terminal decline is 20+ years out; halve that assumption and fair value collapses toward $130–150.

I dissent from the synthesis "undervalued +77.6%" verdict — that number is built on contaminated quarterly data and an overly generous DCF terminal. I also reject Market Forces' "value trap / margin collapse" framing as overwrought given clean 2025 financials. My read: fair value in the $135–155 range on 12–14x normalized earnings of ~$10–11/share, with option value from electrification delay. At $119.72 that's 15–25% upside plus a 1% dividend — a modest long, not a table-pounder, and the thesis unwinds fast if 2026 clean-data earnings confirm the negative trajectory rather than the corrupted acceleration. The real action item is: verify what happened in Q1/Q2 2026 before sizing anything. If those prints are genuine (major acquisition), the whole model set needs redoing; if artifact, my $135–155 range holds.

GPT Reading
Independent reading · gpt-5.4 · generated 2026-09-17 16:47:40
Verdict Fairly valued to slightly overvalued at $119.72 — the revenue step-up is real, but until margins recover this looks more like a $90-$110 stock than a clear bargain.

The raw numbers do not support the dramatic “melting ice cube” framing, but they also do not support the very bullish valuation composite. On a trailing-twelve-month basis through 2026-06-30, Allison did about $4.41B of revenue and $529M of net income, which means revenue exploded 44% versus the prior TTM base of roughly $3.06B while earnings fell about 25% from roughly $707M. That is the central fact here: this business has suddenly become much larger, but much less profitable. TTM net margin is 12.0%, far below the 22.6% earned in 2024 and below the 20.7% earned in 2025. Quarterly data shows why: the last four quarters include two huge revenue quarters, $1.41B and $1.57B, but only 8.0% and 11.6% net margins, versus 24%-25% margins in the comparable quarters a year earlier. That is not normal noise. Something in mix, cost structure, or acquired/adjacent business economics has changed materially.

That margin reset is why I do not buy the simple “cheap at 19x earnings” argument. At $119.72, equity value is $9.89B; using the provided 19.0x P/E implies the market is valuing current earnings as if the lower-margin run rate is sustainable but not disastrous. On sales, the stock is at 2.28x TTM revenue, and on enterprise value 13.25x EBITDA and 3.14x revenue. Those are not distressed multiples for an auto-parts name with leverage and an unclear margin baseline. Allison does have real quality: 36.4% gross margin and 19.6% operating margin are still excellent for anything tied to commercial vehicles, annual free cash flow was $661M on $836M of operating cash flow in 2025, and the balance sheet is not stretched in absolute terms with $2.89B debt against $1.50B cash. Net debt around $1.4B is manageable. But quality only matters if the earnings power is durable, and the recent print says the business mix generating the growth is structurally less profitable than the legacy franchise.

The deeper contradiction in the dataset is that the market seems to be paying for Allison as a high-quality compounder while the recent income statement looks more like a transition story with integration or mix drag. If I annualize nothing and just stay with TTM facts, ROE of 28.4% looks great, but book is only $1.87B, so that figure is heavily shaped by leverage and capital returns rather than pristine incremental economics. Likewise, the rule-based “mature earner” label is partly right—this is a cash-generative incumbent—but mature earners usually do not swing from $824M and $796M quarters into $693M and $737M, then suddenly into $1.41B and $1.57B with margins cut in half. That is a company in the middle of something, not a steady annuity. My read is that the stock is roughly fairly valued to modestly rich because the market is already giving substantial credit for the durability of the franchise while brushing past a very obvious deterioration in profitability. If normalized earnings are no longer $700M+ but instead closer to the current $500M-$550M zone, $120 is not cheap.

The best argument against my caution is straightforward: Allison may be going through a temporary mix/integration trough, not a permanent margin reset, and if so the stock is materially underpriced. Even after the compression, TTM operating income is about $862M, almost identical to the $880M reported for full-year 2025 despite the messy quarter pattern, suggesting underlying earnings power has not collapsed at the operating line. Revenue is massively higher, current ratio is a comfortable 1.81, free cash generation has historically been strong, and the company’s niche positioning can support outsized incremental margins once temporary launch, acquisition, or product-transition costs wash through. If net income recovers even partway back toward the 2024-2025 range on this bigger revenue base, then today’s 19x P/E could quickly become 14x-15x on forward earnings, which would look attractive for a business with sticky OEM and aftermarket relationships. That is the strongest bull case, and it is a good one.

What would change my mind is not a narrative about electrification either way; it is evidence in the next two or three quarters that the new scale can earn old-style margins. Specifically, if quarterly revenue stays above $1.2B while net margin climbs back into the mid-to-high teens and TTM net income re-accelerates toward $650M+, I would turn constructive and could justify $135-$150. Conversely, if revenue remains elevated but net margin stays near 8%-12%, that would confirm Allison has traded legacy-margin revenue for lower-quality sales, in which case I would see fair value more like $90-$105. At today’s $119.72, the stock sits in the uncomfortable middle: too expensive for a margin-reset story, not cheap enough for me to underwrite on faith.

Grok Reading
Independent reading · grok-4.5 · generated 2026-09-17 16:48:39
Verdict Fairly valued to slightly rich at $119.72; 19× trailing earnings and 13× EV/EBITDA leave little cushion once margin compression and EV runoff risk are priced honestly

The raw numbers tell a story of a cash-rich franchise that just broke its own operating pattern in a way that should worry owners more than excite them. Through 2024 Allison compounded revenue from $2.40B to $3.23B and net income from $442M to $731M with net margins consistently in the low-to-mid 20s; 2025 then slipped to $3.01B revenue and $623M net income. The four quarters ending June 2026 reverse that softness on the top line—$693M, $737M, $1.41B and $1.57B—for a trailing revenue base near $4.4B, yet trailing net income is only about $529M and the two most recent quarters printed 8% and 11.6% net margins. That is not operating leverage; it is either a dilutive acquisition, a sharp mix shift into lower-margin volume, or both. Free-cash-flow generation remains the bright spot ($661M on the 2025 annual, low-teens capex intensity), ROE is still a healthy 28%, and net debt after $1.50B of cash is manageable against that FCF. But at $119.72 the stock trades at 19× trailing earnings, 13.2× EV/EBITDA and 2.3× sales while earnings are already contracting at a mid-teens CAGR and leverage sits at 2.1× equity. Those multiples would be reasonable for a stable high-ROE industrial; they are full for one whose incremental dollar of revenue is earning half the historical margin.

The prior models’ split personality is therefore not accidental. The valuation composite that spits out $213–$255 fair value is mechanically extrapolating the new revenue run-rate and the historical cash-conversion rates; the market-forces “value-trap” call is reading the same margin collapse and the structural threat that electrified commercial powertrains pose to a hydraulic-transmission monopoly. I side with the latter reading of the data. A 37% trailing revenue jump that simultaneously destroys 10–15 points of net margin is not the behavior of a compounding moat; it is the behavior of a company buying or chasing volume to offset core-product pressure. Defense and aftermarket may slow the decline, but they do not reverse the direction of travel visible in the last two quarters.

The strongest contrary case is straightforward and quantitative. Cash conversion is excellent, the installed base still throws off high-teens operating margins on the older product set, ROIC of 11.5% exceeds most auto-parts peers, and if the commercial-vehicle EV timeline slips three to five years the runoff pricing power on automatic transmissions could keep FCF above $600M for longer than the market credits. At a 6–7% FCF yield and only an 18% payout ratio the company can keep shrinking the share count while the bear narrative remains unproven. A smart opponent would also note that the absolute net-income dollars in the high-revenue quarters ($112M and $181M) are not collapsing in nominal terms, only in margin rate, so the PE of 19 is not being paid on a vanishing earnings base. I weigh that evidence less heavily because the quality of those earnings has already deteriorated, the balance sheet is not fortress-like, and every year the EV transition advances the terminal multiple compresses regardless of near-term cash.

Two concrete outcomes would flip the view: four consecutive quarters that hold the $1.4B-plus revenue run-rate while restoring net margins above 15%, or clear multi-year OEM awards for the eGen electrified portfolio that demonstrate the company can replace lost hydraulic profit dollar-for-dollar. Absent either, the $120 level already embeds more credit for durability than the recent margin trajectory supports.

Qwen Reading local experiment · off-panel
Independent reading · qwen3.8:27b on the local GPU · generated 2026-09-17 16:48:53 · 14.1s (78.7 tok/s) · live briefing
Overvalued · conviction 4/5 · bull 2/10
followed the VERDICT/STANCE contract
Verdict Overvalued at $119.72 given the 30% earnings decline and 2.1x debt-to-equity; the market is ignoring the margin collapse in favor of a flawed "steady compounder" narrative.

The most glaring contradiction in this dataset is the divergence between the "Mature Earner" classification and the actual earnings trajectory. While the rule-based model labels this a steady compounder, the data shows a violent compression of profitability: net margins have collapsed from 25.1% in Q1 2025 to 8.0% in Q1 2026, even as revenue accelerated to $1.41B. This is not the profile of a business enjoying "monopoly pricing power" in a runoff; it is the profile of a company facing severe input cost inflation or a mix shift toward lower-margin products that is currently outpacing its ability to pass costs through. The "Valuation Synthesis" model’s claim of a 77.6% upside to a $212.63 fair value is mathematically indefensible given that earnings CAGR is -12.1% and recent earnings YoY is -30.6%. You cannot apply a growth premium to a company whose bottom line is shrinking at a double-digit rate while its balance sheet carries $2.89B in debt against only $1.50B in cash. The "Market Forces" signal correctly identifies "Headwinds," but it undersells the danger: the debt-to-equity ratio of 2.096 is not just a risk factor, it is a structural vulnerability that amplifies every margin miss.

The "Bull Story" relies heavily on the idea that electrification will arrive slowly, allowing Allison to milk the legacy transmission base. However, the quarterly data suggests the opposite dynamic is already underway. The jump in revenue to $1.57B in Q2 2026 (a 37.6% YoY increase) paired with a margin drop to 11.6% indicates that the company is likely selling more units at significantly lower effective prices or facing higher material costs. If this is a volume-driven growth strategy to offset declining unit margins, it is a classic "death spiral" for a capital-intensive manufacturer. The "Thesis Evaluation" scores the bull case at 81.6 vs. the bear case at 84.2, a near-tie that masks the fact that the bear case is supported by hard data (margin collapse, debt load) while the bull case is supported by hope (timeline delays). The "Narrative Economics" layer notes that the discount to DCF is an "uncertainty premium," but when that uncertainty is manifested in a 30% drop in earnings, it is no longer a premium—it is a correction.

The strongest case against my bearish read would be the "Strong Cash Flow Quality" signal and the $661M in free cash flow. A smart opponent would argue that despite the GAAP earnings compression, the cash conversion is robust, and the $1.50B cash pile provides a buffer. They would point to the 18.9% revenue CAGR as evidence of market share gains. I weigh this differently because FCF is lagging; the margin compression in the last two quarters is a leading indicator of future cash flow deterioration if costs remain sticky. Furthermore, the "Insider Activity" is neutral, with only trivial A-Award transactions, suggesting that insiders are not aggressively buying the dip to signal confidence. The "Sector Intelligence" note that Allison is "Above Sector Benchmarks" is misleading when the sector is in a structural transition; being above a declining benchmark is not a moat.

What would change my mind is a clear demonstration that the margin compression is a one-time event, such as a specific, quantifiable input cost spike that is already reversing. If the next quarter shows revenue growth of 10-15% with a margin recovery to 15%+, that would validate the "runoff" thesis and suggest the company is successfully managing the transition. Alternatively, a concrete, signed contract with a major OEM for electrified powertrains that includes volume commitments and pricing floors would shift the narrative from "legacy decline" to "transition leader." Until then, the data points to a company that is growing its top line by sacrificing its bottom line, a trade that is rarely sustainable for a leveraged industrial manufacturer.

Experiment only: this reading is not a panel seat and feeds nothing — compare it against the Claude, GPT and Grok readings above.
Big-3 Panel — where each AI stands
Each AI above independently stated a direction (undervalued, fairly valued, or overvalued) and how strongly it believes it (conviction, 0–5). We combine those into a Bull-Bear Index on a 0–10 scale: 5 is neutral, 10 is maximum bullish (undervalued at full conviction), 0 is maximum bearish. We compute the score ourselves with the same arithmetic for every seat — the models never grade their own bullishness — so the three are directly comparable. Δ shows how far each seat sits from the panel average of 5.7; a large Δ marks the dissenting voice, usually the one worth reading.
Claude claude-opus-4-7 7.0
undervalued · conviction 2/5 · Δ +1.3 vs panel · self: 6.0
GPT gpt-5.4 5.0
fairly valued · conviction 3/5 · Δ -0.7 vs panel · self: 4.0
Grok grok-4.5 5.0
fairly valued · conviction 3/5 · Δ -0.7 vs panel · self: 4.0
Advanced Analysis Forensic deep-dive · separate lenses
Separate reads — Company Quality (is it a great business?), Valuation (is it mispriced?), and General Sentiment (how macro + narrative are pushing it), kept deliberately apart · 2026-09-17 16:52:02
Delvantic - Cairn AI
Quality - wait for a dip 6/10
A cash-generative transmission franchise that is only modestly cheap at $119.72, with an unexplained 2026 margin reset and an EV-orphan narrative arguing for patience, not action.
The cruxWhether the 2026 gross-margin drop from 48% to 36% is a transitory mix/acquisition effect or a structural reset - that single question decides if fair value is $145 or $95.
Forensic checks Derived mechanically from ALSN's filed financials — not from the AI lenses
Liquidity & RunwaySelf-Funding
DilutionShare Count Shrinking
Earnings QualityGood Earnings Quality
The four lensesswitch a tab for its full read — score + evidence
Company Quality
+0
Solid
edge √Σ 110 · risk √Σ 110 · conf 7/10

Allison is a mature earner with a genuine cash engine: FCF of $737M on $4.40B revenue (~17% FCF margin), OCF/NI of 1.3x, and negative accruals (-2.7% of assets) all point to real, cash-backed earnings. Capital returns are disciplined - diluted shares fell from 100.7M (2022) to 84.0M (2026), a -4.4% CAGR, with buybacks running 1272% of SBC and SBC only 0.7% of revenue. That is genuine per-share value concentration, not the optical kind.

Strengths 3
m70
Real cash conversion
FCF $737M with OCF/NI 1.3x and accruals -2.7% of assets - earnings are backed by cash, not accrual build.
m65
Consistent share shrink
Diluted share count down from 100.7M to 84.0M (-4.4% CAGR) with buyback/SBC ratio of 1272% - management is a net returner of capital, not a diluter.
m55
Historically premium margins
Gross margins ran 46.9-48.4% and operating margins 27.9-31.3% through 2025, consistent with a moaty specialty-transmission franchise (heavy-duty commercial/defense niche).
Concerns 5
m75
Sudden 2026 margin collapse
Revenue jumped 37% to $4.40B but GM fell from 48.4% to 36.4% and OpM from 31.3% to 19.6%; net income dropped from $762M to $529M. Either a large lower-margin acquisition, mix shift, or cost shock - this is a material break in the historical pattern.
m55
Levered balance sheet
Net cash is -$3.75B against only $399M liquid cash (4% of market cap). FCF services it comfortably, but there is no cushion - the balance sheet is a constraint.
m40
Altman Z in grey zone
Z of 1.88 sits in the grey zone; not distress, but not the fortress reading one would want given the leverage.
m35
Beneish M flag
M-score -1.53 exceeds the -1.78 threshold - statistically elevated manipulation indicators. Likely driven by the same 2026 revenue/margin discontinuity, but worth verifying.
m25
Cyclical end-market
Class 8 truck / commercial vehicle exposure means the earnings stream is inherently cyclical - the mature-earner label masks real cycle risk.
This has been a textbook mature earner - fat margins, real cash, steady buyback shrinking the float. But the 2026 print is a genuine anomaly I cannot ignore: revenue up 37% while gross margin drops 12 points is not normal operating noise, and until I understand it (acquisition mix vs. structural), I cannot grade this as solidly healthy. The cash generation and capital discipline are real; the leverage is meaningful but serviced; the margin break and the Beneish flag are the specific things keeping me at 'Solid' rather than 'Strong'.
Verify before trusting this (5)
  • What drove the 2026 revenue jump to $4.40B and the simultaneous 12pp gross margin drop - acquisition, mix, one-time charge, or accounting change?
  • Debt maturity schedule and covenant structure against the $3.75B net debt position
  • Whether the Beneish flag ties mechanically to the 2026 discontinuity or reflects underlying accrual behavior
  • Customer concentration (Class 8 OEMs, defense) and exposure to EV/alternative powertrain substitution risk
  • Segment-level margin bridge to confirm the core franchise economics are intact
Valuation / Mispricing
+0
Modestly Cheap
edge √Σ 71 · risk √Σ 71 · conf 5/10
Price $119.72 vs a defensible deserved value of ~$145 (anchored-PE); ~20% gap - modestly cheap, not a screaming discount. attractive below $105.00

The e2e composite fair value of $254.54 and signal-adjusted $212.63 are almost certainly runaway prints - the DCF at $413.88 is roughly 3.5x the price and the EPV floor is $46.48, a spread that wide means the methods disagree violently and I should not anchor on the composite. The anchored-PE of $143.91 is the most defensible number in the stack and lines up with what a mature, cash-generative transmission franchise with a leveraged balance sheet deserves. Against $119.72, that implies roughly 15-20% upside to a plausible deserved value, not the 78% headline.

Cheap signals 2
m55
Anchored-PE supports mid-teens upside
The $143.91 anchored-PE fair value implies ~20% upside from $119.72 - a real but not extraordinary discount on the most trustworthy input in the stack.
m45
Cash-generative compounder at ~10x-ish earnings power
A ~$9.9B market cap on a durable transmission franchise with steady buyback shrinking the float looks undemanding for a business the quality lens grades Solid.
Rich / priced-in 3
m50
Composite FV is not credible
DCF at $413.88 vs EPV floor at $46.48 is a 9x spread; the $254 composite and $212 signal-adjusted numbers are averaging incompatible methods and should be heavily discounted, not taken as 78% upside.
m40
2026 margin reset unexplained
Gross margin dropping 12 points while revenue jumps 37% is a genuine anomaly - until it is clearly transitory (mix/acquisition) rather than structural, deserved value should be haircut.
m30
EV-transition overhang is real
Legacy heavy-duty transmission demand faces a credible secular question mark, which justifies part of the market's discount and limits multiple re-rating.
I see a modestly cheap, not deeply cheap, situation. The composite fair value is noise - DCF and EPV are 9x apart - so I ignore the 78% upside headline and anchor on the ~$144 PE-based number, which gives me maybe 20% upside from $119.72. That is interesting but not fat enough given the unexplained 2026 margin reset and the EV overhang. I would get more constructive under $105 where the margin of safety actually earns the label, and I would let go of the thesis if the margin compression proves structural rather than mix-driven.
Verify before trusting this (5)
  • Source of the 2026 gross margin compression - acquisition mix, one-time cost, or structural pricing
  • Management commentary on EV/electrified propulsion product roadmap and win rates
  • Aftermarket revenue trajectory and mix (higher-margin, stickier)
  • Net leverage trend and buyback pace at current price
  • Any large one-time items inflating TTM revenue
General Sentiment
-29
Headwind
tail √Σ 42 · head √Σ 72 · conf 6/10

The dominant non-fundamental force on ALSN is narrative, not macro. The market has tagged Allison as a legacy internal-combustion transmission maker with no credible electrified-propulsion story, and that framing is the reason a steady-compounder trades at a discount. Intensity is only moderate and cult coefficient is low, so there is no fan base bidding it up on dips; durability is fragile, meaning any EV-adoption headline in trucking can re-open the de-rating. That is a persistent, ordinary-to-real headwind on this specific name. The macro tape (VIX 17.7, S&P off 3%, 10y at 5%) is a market-wide crosswind, but with beta 0.97 and a defense/motorhome/aftermarket cash profile, ALSN is not the natural victim of a risk-off day; high-multiple story stocks get mauled first. So the tape trims rather than dominates here. Analyst/news flow is quiet and mildly constructive - a Fidelity Dividend Growth Fund mention framing ALSN as capturing new markets beyond commercial vehicles is a small tailwind to the 'diversification' counter-narrative, but it is one letter, not a re-rating catalyst. Net: a modest headwind, driven by the EV-orphan narrative, partially offset by low beta and benign flow.

Tailwinds 2
m30
Constructive fund commentary
Fidelity Dividend Growth Fund publicly framing ALSN as expanding beyond commercial vehicles supports the diversification counter-narrative and adds a small dividend-quality bid.
m30
Momentum quietly firming
Recent 37.6% run vs 18.9% long-term CAGR shows the tape is not actively selling this name; flow is neutral-to-positive despite the sour narrative.
Headwinds 3
m55
EV-transition orphan narrative
Market frames ALSN as lacking a credible electrified-propulsion story while logistics/trucking demand wobbles. Fragile durability means any EV-truck headline can re-widen the discount; no cult base to defend it.
m30
Risk-off tape, but muted transmission
VIX elevated and S&P off its high is a genuine crosswind, but ALSN's 0.97 beta, cash generation, and defense/aftermarket mix make it a poor short in a stress tape - the pressure lands lightly here.
m35
High-rate, high-PE macro backdrop
10y near 5% and market PE 24.6 pressure all equities and cap multiple expansion for a cyclical industrial without a growth story to justify re-rating.
Net pressure leans down but not hard. The EV-orphan narrative is the real force here - moderate intensity, fragile, no cult to catch it - and it is the reason this name carries a discount that will not close on fundamentals alone. The risk-off tape is real but poorly targeted at a low-beta cash-generative industrial, so it trims rather than crushes. Absent a narrative catalyst (an EV powertrain win, a fleet contract, a credible electrification roadmap), sentiment stays a mild-to-moderate headwind that keeps the multiple capped.
Verify before trusting this (4)
  • Any EV-truck adoption or fleet-electrification headline that reignites the disruption narrative
  • Management commentary on electrified-propulsion roadmap at next earnings
  • Whether risk-off deepens (VIX above 20 sustained) and starts dragging low-beta industrials too
  • Sell-side target revisions or new coverage that reframes ALSN as a diversified powertrain play
The market-wide tape + this name's exposure to it (beta / sector / narrative durability). Context on the non-fundamental pressure — not a call on the business or the price. processId: detail-general-sentiment
Growth Outlook
+1
Growing
edge √Σ 100 · risk √Σ 99 · conf 6/10

Macro is a headwind for a capital-goods-adjacent supplier: 10y near 5% and a nearly flat curve (0.33) raise fleet and equipment financing costs and defer replacement cycles; tariffed steel, aluminum and components pressure input cost recovery across the supplier base. Offsets are real and company-specific: rising global defense budgets fund multi-year propulsion programs, and the slippage of commercial EV mandates extends the economic life of the legacy fully automatic franchise in vocational duty cycles. Infrastructure and mining capex are the swing factor for the newly acquired off-highway exposure — currently soft, which means the acquisition was consolidated near a cyclical trough rather than a peak.

Growth drivers 5
m68
Acquisition-driven scale and end-market diversification
The +88.1% matched-quarter revenue jump and +37.6% recent YoY are far too large to be organic in a mature transmission business; they reflect consolidation of an acquired off-highway/drivetrain platform. This adds mining, construction and agriculture exposure alongside on-highway vocational, broadens the aftermarket installed base, and gives a genuinely larger revenue base to grow from into FY1 as the period consolidates fully.
m49
Sticky aftermarket and pricing on an installed base
Allison's genuine-parts/service channel is tied to a multi-decade installed base of fully automatic transmissions with no drop-in substitute; this revenue recurs independent of new-truck build rates and carries above-corporate margin. It is the mechanism that keeps revenue from tracking the freight cycle one-for-one and explains why EPS has beaten in 3 of the last 4 prints despite soft industry conditions.
m33
Defense and off-highway program demand
Tracked and wheeled military vehicle propulsion is a multi-year, budget-funded backlog business with rising global defense appropriations — a demand stream that is uncorrelated with commercial truck cycles and carries long program tails. Small as a share of revenue but a positive offset precisely when on-highway is weak.
m35
Slower-than-feared electrification of medium/heavy vocational
Vocational, refuse, motorhome and off-highway duty cycles remain poorly served by battery-electric drivelines, and commercial EV mandates have slipped. That extends the runway for the legacy fully automatic product far beyond what the bear framing assumes, protecting both OEM fitment and the aftermarket annuity.
m24
Per-share leverage from cash generation
FCF CAGR of +4.1% against negative earnings CAGR implies cash conversion holds up through the earnings dip; historically deployed into repurchase, which converts flat net income into positive EPS growth — visible in EPS beats (2.73 vs 2.61, 2.57 vs 2.10).
Growth risks 5
m65
Growth is not reaching the bottom line
Revenue +88.1% with operating income -3.8% and net income -24.3% is the single most important fact in the file: the acquired mix is lower-margin, and amortization plus deal financing costs are absorbing the incremental gross profit. Earnings CAGR is -12.1% over the multi-year record. Until synergies and deleveraging show up, revenue growth is optically large and economically thin — which is why the mechanical +46.7% projection should be discounted heavily.
m45
Category is flat-to-declining with industry-wide margin compression
Auto parts industry revenue CAGR -0.6%, category median recent growth -4.8%, operating margins -4.4pp and net margins -2.5pp over three years, industry earnings CAGR -7.3%. This is a pricing-and-cost squeeze affecting suppliers broadly (tariffed inputs, OEM cost recovery pressure), and it caps how much of Allison's scale advantage converts to margin expansion.
m44
North America truck and freight cycle softness
Class 8 and vocational build rates plus a weak freight backdrop directly gate on-highway fitment volume; the same weakness hits off-highway via deferred mining/construction capex. Macro headwinds with a 10y near 5% and a nearly flat curve (0.33) keep fleet replacement and equipment financing expensive.
m33
Integration and leverage risk on the deal
A large acquisition into an unfamiliar off-highway channel brings synergy-timing risk, working-capital drag and interest expense that is already visible in the net income decline. If synergy capture slips, FY1 and FY2 earnings stay flat while the revenue base looks impressive.
m23
Long-run propulsion substitution
Structural electrification of medium-duty and bus applications erodes transmission content per vehicle eventually; Allison's electrified offering is not yet a demonstrated share-taker. This is a years-5+ risk, not a next-8-quarters risk, but it caps terminal growth assumptions.
vs expectations: ~6m above · 1y inline · 2-3y above
The forward growth verdict — is the business itself likely to grow (next 2 quarters / year 1 / years 2–3), judged against its category and against printed expectations. The full horizon ladder + creme renders on the Growth Outlook card above. Not a call on the price (Valuation owns that) or the tape (Sentiment owns that).
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Lenses kept deliberately separate — Company Quality (price-agnostic), Valuation (price-conditional), General Sentiment (non-fundamental macro/narrative pressure), and Growth Outlook (the forward growth verdict). The scores are not blended. Filing-level items (convertibles, lock-ups, customer concentration) are v2 — see each lens's "verify."
Price Prediction
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Prediction unavailable. valuation-synthesis has no result for ALSN — the prediction needs its fair-value anchors.

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My Notes personal — only you see this
v1.1.760 · f4b58a28 · 2026-10-07 20:07:48