AAR Corp. AIR

Competitive advantage analysis · industrials

Corporate Default
Overall moat score
59/100
Moderate

Ranked against 79 peers in Aerospace & Defense

About AAR Corp.

AAR Corp. provides products and services to commercial aviation, government, and defense markets in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Parts Supply, Repair & Engineering, Integrated Solutions, and Expeditionary Services. The company leases and sells aircraft components and replacement parts; and designs, manufactures, and repairs transportation pallets. The company also provides airframe maintenance services, … Full AIR analysis →

Key strengths

  • ROIC Sustainably Above Peers ROIC at 68.1th percentile exceeds peers and WACC, demonstrating superior capital allocation.
  • Margins Stable Across Cycles Operating margin volatility is low (stability score 0.88), demonstrating pricing resilience across cycles.

Key risks

  • Inconsistent Cash Generation Cash generation is inconsistent (score 0.48), indicating operational challenges.

The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.

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Pricing Power

Moderate
62
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Signals, strengths and risks for Pricing Power

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Signals, strengths and risks for Cost Advantage

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Signals, strengths and risks for Customer Stickiness

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Signals, strengths and risks for Capital Efficiency

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Signals, strengths and risks for Resilience

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Signals, strengths and risks for Scale & Market Position

Where AIR ranks in Aerospace & Defense

AAR Corp. ranks #31 of 80 scored companies in Aerospace & Defense by moat score — the top 39%. The widest moat in the group is Howmet Aerospace Inc. (HWM) at 80/100.

# Company Moat score Rating
27 L3Harris Technologies, Inc. LHX 60/100 Moderate
28 Hexcel Corporation HXL 60/100 Moderate
29 Astronics Corporation ATRO 60/100 Moderate
30 Byrna Technologies, Inc. BYRN 60/100 Moderate
31 AAR Corp. AIR 59/100 Moderate
32 Karman Holdings Inc. KRMN 59/100 Moderate
33 National Presto Industries, Inc NPK 58/100 Moderate
34 Huntington Ingalls Industries, HII 57/100 Moderate
35 Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. SWBI 52/100 Moderate

See every General Corporate company ranked by moat score →

How AIR scores on the Corporate Default defenses

Pricing Power

Score 62 · 20% of the moat score

Pricing power is the ability to raise prices without losing volume.

Cost Advantage

Score 65 · 15% of the moat score

A cost advantage means delivering the same product for structurally less — better purchasing, denser distribution, a more automated process.

Customer Stickiness

Score 61 · 15% of the moat score

Stickiness is what makes revenue repeat without being re-won every year.

Capital Efficiency

Score 70 · 18% of the moat score

Capital efficiency asks what the company earns on the money tied up in the business.

Resilience

Score 49 · 17% of the moat score

Resilience is the capacity to get through a bad year on its own terms — enough liquidity, enough interest cover, and enough cash generation to avoid a rescue financing or a forced sale.

Scale & Market Position

Score 46 · 15% of the moat score

Scale matters only when it converts into economics.

How each Corporate Default defense is measured, in full →

Understanding AIR's moat

What is AAR Corp.'s moat score?

AAR Corp. (AIR) scores 59 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as moderate. It ranks #31 of 80 scored companies in Aerospace & Defense, the top 39%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 79 companies in Aerospace & Defense. Its strongest defense is Capital Efficiency (70/100) and its weakest is Scale & Market Position (46/100).

How does AAR Corp. compare with other Aerospace & Defense companies?

AAR Corp. ranks #31 of 80 scored companies in Aerospace & Defense by moat score. The widest moat in Aerospace & Defense is Howmet Aerospace Inc. (HWM) at 80/100. The companies ranked closest are Byrna Technologies, Inc. (BYRN) at 60 just above it and Karman Holdings Inc. (KRMN) at 59 just below it.

How is the moat score calculated?

Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Corporate Default in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 79 companies in Aerospace & Defense. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.

Why is AAR Corp. scored with the Corporate Default template?

Most public companies sell a product or a service at a margin, so the moat question is whether that margin survives contact with competitors. The Corporate template scores the six defenses that show up in a general operating company's financial signature: whether it can hold price, produce more cheaply than rivals, keep its customers, earn a return above its cost of capital, withstand a downturn, and turn size into economics.

Which competitive defenses are measured for AAR Corp.?

The Corporate Default template measures 6 defenses, and AIR scores: Pricing Power (62), Cost Advantage (65), Customer Stickiness (61), Capital Efficiency (70), Resilience (49), Scale & Market Position (46). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.

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