Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. WMG scored 72.7, WLY scored 54.3 — WMG leads.
Compare another set
WMG
Warner Music Group Corp.
Entertainment · Quality-Growth
72.7
$28.72 · $15.0B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
18.4
WMG leads
WLY
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Publishing · Quality-Growth
54.3
$49.64 · $2.5B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestWLY13.4x
Fastest growthWMG+12.9%
Strongest balance sheetWLY1.73
Highest qualityWMG74 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueWLY-37%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
WMG
stronger →← stronger
WLY
74
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
67
85
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
36
61
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
66
WMG is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
WMG
WLY
$836mC+
FCF
$240mC
+12.9%B+
Rev
-0.3%D+
4.53D
D/E
1.73C
23.0xB
P/E
13.4xB+
0.52A-
PEG
13.05D
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
WMG
WLY
37% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
37% below
~16%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~-9%/yr
-33%
1-yr DCF upside
+68%
-27%
5-yr DCF upside
+60%
-18%
10-yr DCF upside
+48%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
WMG
Why this score
Raising its dividend
WLY
No notable signals flagged.
The companies
WMGWarner Music Group Corp.
Entertainment · $28.72 · beta 1.40
Why now
Entertainment · market cap $15.0b. 19% off the 52-week high of $35.42. Revenue growing +13%, comfortably above the S&P median. PEG 0.52 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 16 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $37.81 (implying +32% upside).
Moat
ROE 79% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 124% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
D/E 4.53 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer.
WLYJohn Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Publishing · $49.64 · beta 0.75
Why now
Publishing · market cap $2.5b. 14% off the 52-week high of $57.45.
Moat
ROE 25% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 121% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Value re-rating depends on a catalyst. Without one — analyst day, divestiture, margin recovery, capital return — the stock can stay cheap on these multiples for years.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
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 WMG and WLY diverge
On the headline score the gap is 18.4 points in favor of WMG. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
GrowthWMG 84.6 · WLY 36.1WMG +48.5
QualityWMG 74.4 · WLY 67.4WMG +7.0
ValueWMG 61.1 · WLY 66.0WLY +4.9
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 WMG or WLY the better stock?
WMG scores higher: WMG 72.7, WLY 54.3 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 WMG and WLY differ most?
The widest gap is growth, where WMG leads by 49 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 WMG and WLY 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.