MeritValue

Acadian Asset Management Inc.

AAMIdata completeness 75%9 fiscal years on file

Data notes: no data for concept 'capex'

The thesis, from the filings

Acadian Asset Management Inc. earns about 62% on invested capital, and has bought back 55% of its shares over 5 years. The applicable estimate puts fair value near $24.32 a share.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$523.8M1$417.2M2$426.6M3$505.6M3$563.7M3
Net income$828.4M4$100.6M5$65.8M6$85M6$80M6
Operating cash flow−$11.5M7$116.8M8$68.3M9$55.8M9−$2.4M9
Capital expenditure—————
Free cash flow (derived)—————
Total debt$400M10$275M11$275M12$275M13$200M14
Cash & equivalents$252.1M15$121.2M16$147.6M16$98.5M16$124.4M16
Diluted shares80.5M43.2M42.5M38.3M36.2M

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

ii. Your slice — ownership made literal
If you owned
shares
Net assets behind them
—
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
$22.09
Free cash flow it threw off
—
Debt you’d be carrying
$55.21

10 shares of this business that earned you $22.09 last year, against $55.21 of debt.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
62% avg · 5y
FY21 85%FY22 66%FY23 34%FY24 —FY25 —

It earned an average 62% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
−55% shares · 5y

Share count is down 55% over 5 years — management has been buying back stock, quietly handing owners a bigger slice. Total debt has fallen 50% — deleveraging.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
only 0 years of FCF (need ≥3) — model not applicable
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
only 0 years of FCF (need ≥3) — model not applicable
Earnings Power Value
$24.32
assumptions (8)
  • riskFreeRate4.7%
  • equityRiskPremium5.0%
  • beta100.0%
  • equityWeight85.0%
  • costOfDebtSpread1.5%
  • taxRate21.0%
  • normalizedEarnings$85M
  • growthAssumed0.0%
Graham Number
not applicable
book value / share count missing or non-positive — Graham Number undefined

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001748824-24-000010 (Revenues)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001748824-25-000016 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012856 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001748824-24-000010 (NetIncomeLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001748824-25-000016 (NetIncomeLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012856 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001748824-24-000010 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001748824-25-000016 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012856 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001748824-22-000018 (LongTermDebt)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001748824-23-000010 (LongTermDebt)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001748824-24-000010 (LongTermDebt)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001748824-25-000016 (LongTermDebt)
  14. 10-K · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012856 (LongTermDebt)
  15. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001748824-25-000016 (CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents)
  16. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012856 (CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents)