AES vs. TLN: AES vs. Talen Energy Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN) are both classified in the Independent Power Producers & Energy Traders sub-industry within the broader Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

AES (AES) has more than two decades of public-market history since June 26, 1991, whereas Talen Energy (TLN) listed on June 2, 2023 and has a much shorter record to draw on.

Company profile comparison for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Profile Item	AES	TLN
Name	The AES Corporation	Talen Energy Corporation
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers	Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers
GICS Sub-Industry	Independent Power Producers & Energy Traders	Independent Power Producers & Energy Traders
Market Capitalization	10.61 billion USD	14.73 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	June 26, 1991	June 2, 2023
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AES

TLN

GSPC

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
Total Return (1Y)	10.79%	-6.63%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	3.44%	88.64%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	-5.12%	--

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AES

TLN

GSPC

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	25.19%	58.28%
Beta (5Y)	0.93	1.53
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-63.43%	-36.72%
Avg. Volume (3M)	8.50M	1.01M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AES and TLN are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.26	-0.19
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.33	-0.26

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Talen Energy (TLN) reports a negative ROE of -16.54%; negative ROE can reflect losses or negative shareholders’ equity, so it is harder to read as capital efficiency. Meanwhile AES (AES) reports 8.68%, ranking against industry peers normally.

AES

Utilities industry group

8.68%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
AES: 8.68%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

TLN

Utilities industry group

-16.54%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%
TLN: -16.54%

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Talen Energy (TLN) reports a negative net margin of -5.67%, usually indicating a net loss over the period. Meanwhile AES (AES) reports 13.16%, ranking against industry peers normally.

AES

Utilities industry group

13.16%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
AES: 13.16%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

TLN

Utilities industry group

-5.67%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%
TLN: -5.67%

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both AES (AES) at 23.89% and Talen Energy (TLN) at 17.35% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

AES

Utilities industry group

23.89%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
AES: 23.89%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

TLN

Utilities industry group

17.35%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
TLN: 17.35%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
ROE (TTM)	8.68%	-16.54%
ROA (TTM)	3.13%	0.88%
Net Margin (TTM)	13.16%	-5.67%
Operating Margin (TTM)	23.89%	17.35%
Gross Margin (TTM)	21.34%	42.67%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Talen Energy (TLN) at 26.68% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while AES (AES) at -0.37% is in the bottom quartile, showing a clear gap in revenue momentum.

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Neither side shows strong earnings momentum: AES (AES) at -46.61% sits in the bottom EPS growth quartile, and Talen Energy (TLN) at -127.11% is weaker still, below its industry range.

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
Revenue Growth (YoY)	-0.37%	26.68%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-1.03%	2.87%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-46.61%	-127.11%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	--

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both AES (AES) at 0.86 and Talen Energy (TLN) at 0.89 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

AES

Utilities industry group

0.86

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
AES: 0.86
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

TLN

Utilities industry group

0.89

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
TLN: 0.89
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both balance sheets lean debt-heavy versus peers, but TLN is more stretched: AES (AES) at 2.43 sits in the higher-leverage quartile and Talen Energy (TLN) at 5.97 is above its industry benchmark range.

AES

Utilities industry group

2.43

Max: 2.63
AES: 2.43
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

TLN

Utilities industry group

5.97

TLN: 5.97
Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.86	0.89
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.43	5.97
Net Debt / EBITDA	7.28	13.69

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Talen Energy (TLN) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile AES (AES) reports a yield of 4.73%, ranking against industry peers normally.

AES

Utilities industry group

4.73%

Max: 6.66%
AES: 4.73%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

TLN

Utilities industry group

0.00%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
TLN: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Talen Energy (TLN) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile AES (AES) reports a payout of 28.27%, ranking against industry peers normally.

AES

Utilities industry group

28.27%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
AES: 28.27%
Min: 0.00%

TLN

Utilities industry group

0.00%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
TLN: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
Dividend Yield (TTM)	4.73%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	28.27%	0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: AES (AES) trades at 5.97 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while Talen Energy (TLN) has no P/E ratio this period.

AES

Utilities industry group

5.97

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
AES: 5.97
Min: 3.34

TLN

Utilities industry group

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34
TLN: --

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): TLN does not report P/E ratio, so it has no value marker; AES is benchmarked against the Utilities industry group.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

AES (AES) at 0.78 sits in the cheaper P/S ratio quartile while Talen Energy (TLN) at 3.29 prices around its industry’s middle — AES costs less per dollar of sales, though read it alongside growth and margins.

AES

Utilities industry group

0.78

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
AES: 0.78
Min: 0.00

TLN

Utilities industry group

3.29

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
TLN: 3.29
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

AES (AES) at 1.86 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Talen Energy (TLN) at 10.14 prices above its benchmark range — TLN looks rich relative to book.

AES

Utilities industry group

1.86

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
AES: 1.86
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

TLN

Utilities industry group

10.14

TLN: 10.14
Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

AES (AES) vs. Talen Energy (TLN): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for AES (AES) and Talen Energy (TLN)
Metric	AES	TLN
P/E Ratio (TTM)	5.97	--
P/S Ratio (TTM)	0.78	3.29
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	1.86	10.14
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-30.54%	6.39%