AERA vs IMAX vs LION Stock Comparison

AI Era, Imax and Lionsgate Studios Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
AERA AI Era Corp.
$0.02 -83.3% 1M -95.0% 1Y
Market cap
$116.03K
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$10.01M
Div. yield
–
Film and Television Communication Services
2 wins
IMAX Imax Corp
$50.49 -10.0% 1M +54.1% 1Y
Market cap
$2.77B
P/E
67.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$416.08M
Div. yield
–
Industrial Machinery Industrials
4 wins
LION Lionsgate Studios Corp.
$12.22 +11.3% 1M +91.8% 1Y
Market cap
$3.64B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$2.88B
Div. yield
–
Film and Television Communication Services
3 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Imax leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Imax 4, Lionsgate Studios 3, AI Era 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionAERAIMAXLIONLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $116.03K $2.77B $3.64B LION
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -0.3x 67.8x -30.1x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 22.0x — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +102.4% +14.8% +9.9% AERA
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -3.1% 9.8% -4.1% IMAX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 13.2% 18.4% LION
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.0x -0.8x 9.5x IMAX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -95.0% +54.1% +91.8% LION
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -80.0%/yr +21.8%/yr — IMAX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 403.9% 42.9% 49.1% IMAX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 77/100 63/100 40/100 AERA

Percentile Scorecard

AERAIMAXLION

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisAERAIMAXLION
Valuation 91 #12 of 123 41 #121 of 203 37 #78 of 123
Growth 89 #13 of 107 93 #15 of 188 98 #3 of 107
Profitability 69 #33 of 105 82 #34 of 184 40 #63 of 105
Financial Health 58 #56 of 131 84 #36 of 217 11 #117 of 131
Shareholder Returns – 15 #130 of 153 14 #64 of 74
Overall 77 63 40
  • AERA ranked among 134 companies in Communication Services
  • IMAX ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • LION ranked among 134 companies in Communication Services

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodAERAIMAXLIONSPY
1 month -83.3%-10.0%+11.3% +0.9%
3 months -95.5%+3.6%-6.4% +5.9%
6 months -98.0%+35.6%+0.2% +8.5%
Year to date -97.8%+36.6%+33.8% +13.3%
1 year -95.0%+54.1%+91.8% +12.4%
3 years -97.8%+181.4%+16.6% +88.1%
3 years, per year -71.9%+41.2%+5.3% +23.5%
5 years -100.0%+167.9%— +68.2%
5 years, per year -80.0%+21.8%— +11.0%
10 years -100.0%+66.4%— +263.4%
10 years, per year -72.1%+5.2%— +13.8%

Risk

MeasureAERAIMAXLIONSPY
Volatility, 1Y 403.9%42.9%49.1% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 448.5%36.2%39.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.970.120.79 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.241.261.87 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -100.0%-42.3%-55.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -98.7%-10.4%-25.5% -0.9%
52-week high $1.52$56.35$16.40 $779.14
52-week low $0.02$32.43$6.23 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleAERAIMAXLION
P/E now vs peer median -0.3xmedian 17.0x 67.8xmedian 25.4x -30.1xmedian 17.0x
P/S now vs peer median 0.0xmedian 1.1x 6.7xmedian 1.9x 1.3xmedian 1.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 0.0xmedian 9.6x 17.8xmedian 14.3x 33.0xmedian 9.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 0.0xmedian 9.3x 21.9xmedian 21.8x 37.3xmedian 9.3x
P/B now vs peer median 0.0xmedian 1.6x 6.2xmedian 2.2x -3.0xmedian 1.6x
PEG now vs peer median 0.00median 0.32 0.63median 1.41 —median 0.32

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsAERAIMAXLION
Revenue $10.01M $416.08M $2.88B
Gross profit – $248.12M –
Operating income $3.28M $83.87M $133.20M
Net income -$313.02K $47.12M -$118.80M
Free cash flow $2.58M $126.59M $97.40M
R&D – $6.42M –
EPS (diluted) $-0.06 $0.72 $-0.41
Cash & equivalents $115.84K $159.92M $425.80M
Total debt $3.47M $38.84M $1.90B
Shares (diluted) 5.46M 56.57M 291.60M
Enterprise value -$534.20K $2.26B $2.60B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricAERAIMAXLION
P/E -0.3x 67.8x -30.1x
P/FCF 0.0x 21.9x 37.3x
P/Operating cash flow 0.0x 20.8x 33.0x
P/S 0.0x 6.7x 1.3x
P/B 0.0x 6.2x -3.0x
P/Tangible book 0.0x 6.6x -3.0x
EV/EBITDA 0.0x 17.8x 33.0x
EV/EBIT 0.1x 31.6x 38.4x
EV/Revenue 0.0x 6.4x 1.8x
EV/FCF 0.2x 20.9x 52.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 0.2x 19.9x 46.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.00 0.63 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricAERAIMAXLION
Revenue growth (1Y) 102.4% 14.8% 9.9%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 65.5% 5.8% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 20.4% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 9.6% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 249.5% 39.8% 2,284%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 44.1% 42.6% –
Net income growth (1Y) -134.8% 10.6% 71.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 54.6% 79.6% –
EPS growth (1Y) -40,365% 21.7% 73.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -164.0% 107.7% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 167.3% 72.7% 284.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 57.6% 40.0% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 167.3% 88.4% 234.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 57.6% 44.5% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricAERAIMAXLION
Gross margin – 59.6% –
EBITDA margin 117.6% 35.7% 5.4%
Operating margin 32.8% 20.2% 4.6%
Pretax margin -3.1% 15.0% -3.3%
Net margin -3.1% 9.8% -4.1%
FCF margin 25.8% 30.4% 3.4%
Operating cash flow margin 25.8% 31.9% 3.8%
Return on equity -7.1% 10.7% –
Return on assets -3.3% 5.2% -2.2%
Return on invested capital – 13.2% 18.4%
Return on capital employed 156.1% – 6.6%
Asset turnover 1.0x 0.5x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -8.3x 2.8x -0.9x
Stock comp / revenue – 6.5% 4.1%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricAERAIMAXLION
Debt / assets 4.1% 4.2% 35.7%
Debt / equity 0.2x 0.1x -1.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.0x -0.8x 9.5x
Debt / FCF 0.2x 0.3x 19.5x
Liabilities / assets 73.9% 51.0% 122.5%
Equity / assets 26.1% 49.0% -22.5%
Interest coverage 46.9x 11.2x 0.5x
Current ratio 0.1x – 0.4x
Quick ratio 0.1x – 0.4x
Cash ratio 0.0x – 0.1x
Altman Z-score -0.43 – -0.45

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricAERAIMAXLION
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield -449.1% -0.7% -0.2%
Shareholder yield -449.1% -0.7% -0.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusAERAIMAXLION
Forward P/E – 22.0xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year – $2.29FY2026 –
EPS growth, next FY – +57.9%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after – +4.4% –
Revenue, next fiscal year – $497.98MFY2026 –
Revenue growth, next FY – +21.4%FY2026 –
Revenue growth, the year after – -5.7% –

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersAERAIMAXLION
Held by institutions – 91.5% 89.1%
Institutions holding – 257 291
Change in shares held, QoQ – +4.5% +1.3%
Institutions buying – 144 155
Institutions selling – 69 85
Buyers to sellers – 2.09 1.82

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

AERAIMAXLION
AERA 1.00 -0.06 -0.06
IMAX -0.06 1.00 0.19
LION -0.06 0.19 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, AERA, IMAX and LION?

Lionsgate Studios (LION) is the largest by market capitalisation: AI Era (AERA) $116.03K, Imax (IMAX) $2.77B, Lionsgate Studios (LION) $3.64B.

Which company is growing faster?

AI Era (AERA) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: AI Era (AERA) +102.4%, Imax (IMAX) +14.8%, Lionsgate Studios (LION) +9.9%.

Which company is more profitable?

Imax (IMAX) has the highest net margin (AI Era (AERA) -3.1%, Imax (IMAX) 9.8%, Lionsgate Studios (LION) -4.1%). On return on invested capital, Lionsgate Studios (LION) leads (Imax (IMAX) 13.2%, Lionsgate Studios (LION) 18.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Lionsgate Studios (LION) returned the most: AI Era (AERA) -95.0%, Imax (IMAX) +54.1%, Lionsgate Studios (LION) +91.8%. Over five years, Imax (IMAX) compounded fastest (AI Era (AERA) -80.0%/yr, Imax (IMAX) +21.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Imax (IMAX) has been the steadiest (AI Era (AERA) 403.9%, Imax (IMAX) 42.9%, Lionsgate Studios (LION) 49.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, AERA, IMAX and LION?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Imax (IMAX) leads on 4. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.