Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. AER scored 63.1, SUNB scored 47.8 — AER leads.
Compare another set
AER
AerCap Holdings N.V.
Rental & Leasing Services · Quality-Growth
63.1
$144.72 · $22.7B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
15.3
AER leads
SUNB
Sunbelt Rentals Holdings, Inc.
Rental & Leasing Services · Quality-Growth
47.8
$75.17 · $30.8B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
Fastest growthAER+6.5%
Strongest balance sheetSUNB1.53
Highest qualitySUNB68 / 100
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
AER
stronger →← stronger
SUNB
60
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
68
63
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
52
66
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
30
AER is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
AER
SUNB
-$307mF
FCF
$1.2bC+
+6.5%C+
Rev
+3.4%C+
2.33D
D/E
1.53C
2.5xB
P/S
—
0.80A-
PEG
1.12B+
—
P/E
22.7xB+
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
AER
SUNB
—
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
165% above
—
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~30%/yr
—
1-yr DCF upside
-62%
—
5-yr DCF upside
-62%
—
10-yr DCF upside
-63%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
AER
Why this score
Buying back stock
Raising its dividend
SUNB
Why this score
Buying back stock
Short track record
The companies
AERAerCap Holdings N.V.
Rental & Leasing Services · $144.72 · beta 0.98
Why now
Rental & Leasing Services · market cap $22.7b. 9% off the 52-week high of $158.81. PEG 0.80 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 10 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $179.30 (implying +24% upside).
Moat
Net margin 38% is exceptional — pricing-power territory rare outside premium software, branded staples, and specialty pharma. ROE 19% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
D/E 2.33 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer. Free cash flow is negative (-$307m) — capital raises or debt issuance likely required; dilution / leverage risk.
SUNBSunbelt Rentals Holdings, Inc.
Rental & Leasing Services · $75.17 · beta 1.67
Why now
Rental & Leasing Services · market cap $30.8b. 13% off the 52-week high of $86.68. 15 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $88.57 (implying +18% upside).
Moat
ROE 18% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
Beta 1.67 implies above-market volatility — position-size to the drawdowns this name will produce in a market correction, not to its bull-case return.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
The model slightly favors SUNB (62.5) over AER (61.7), primarily driven by SUNB's stronger Growth pillar (56 versus AER's 41). However, a contrarian investor might prefer AER, which trades at a significant 62% discount to its DCF fair value and has a remarkably low implied growth rate of -18% priced in. Investors should note SUNB carries a "Short track record" signal from the model.
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where AER and SUNB diverge
On the headline score the gap is 15.3 points in favor of AER. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
ValueAER 66.2 · SUNB 30.5AER +35.7
GrowthAER 62.9 · SUNB 52.4AER +10.5
QualityAER 60.4 · SUNB 68.1SUNB +7.7
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is AER or SUNB the better stock?
AER scores higher: AER 63.1, SUNB 47.8 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do AER and SUNB differ most?
The widest gap is value, where AER leads by 36 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. Neither name sweeps: they trade the lead across the three pillars, so the comparison is a trade-off rather than one being better on every measure.
How are AER and SUNB scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.