AAON vs WLDN Stock Comparison
Compare AAON and WLDN across AIQ Score, fundamentals, valuation, momentum, risk, analyst expectations and current market evidence.
What is the main difference between AAON and WLDN?
WLDN leads the current stock comparison as Willdan Group, Inc., with the clearest separation coming from value and the broader AIQ evidence mix.
AlgovestIQ AIQ Comparison
AAON, Inc. vs Willdan Group, Inc.
WLDN leads
WLDN leads by 14 AIQ points, primarily on Value and Quality, but the lead has narrowed from 25 points over 30 sessions. Wall Street currently favors AAON on target upside.
Competitive: 5 of 6 evidence groups support WLDN, its lead is narrowing, and its current signal state is conflicted.
AAON, Inc.
Willdan Group, Inc.
The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors WLDN over AAON, 58 versus 44 as of Sep 11, 2026. WLDN's advantage is driven primarily by stronger value and quality. WLDN also shows the stronger technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average, though analyst target upside currently favors AAON. 5 of 6 covered evidence groups favor WLDN today, and the comparison is rated Competitive on stability: the leader's advantage has been narrowing. WLDN lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 25 to 14 points over 30 sessions. WLDN leads on all four AIQ factor dimensions. Value is itself one of those four, so a sweep is not explained by valuation alone — it deserves additional scrutiny for unmodeled catalysts, expectations or event risk.
Compare AAON, Inc. and Willdan Group, Inc. across the Algovestiq AIQ Score, valuation, quality, momentum, risk, technicals and analyst expectations.
Performance over time
Price-return comparison using available daily close history.
Total return comparison
Growth of $10,000
Based on available close-price history. Distribution reinvestment is not added unless already reflected in the source series.
Compare AAON and WLDN against another ticker
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AIQ Factor Divergence
Where the two separate, on the four dimensions behind the AIQ Score. Bars read outward from a shared zero: further from the centre is a wider gap.
- Value40 vs 66WLDN +26
- Quality52 vs 64WLDN +12
- Risk Resilience49 vs 57WLDN +8
- Momentum37 vs 43WLDN +6
5 of 6 evidence groups favor WLDN. WLDN’s edge is concentrated in value and quality.
What changed since the last close
Latest scored session 2026-09-10, compared against the prior scored session 2026-09-09.
No factor moved materially.
New signals
- 52-Week Low Proximity — bearish, risk, long horizon (2.1%)
Largest factor move: Momentum -4
No new signals fired.
WLDN's lead narrowed by 1 AIQ points in the latest snapshot.
Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — AAON and WLDN both carry a full feed there.
The central trade-off
WLDN (Willdan Group, Inc.): the stronger current systematic profile, led by value and quality.
AAON (AAON, Inc.): the counter-case, on analyst expectations — but at materially higher volatility, 43.4% against 30.8%.
The AIQ Score and Wall Street therefore point in different directions on this pair.
Which one fits your objective
The same two names rank differently depending on what you are optimizing for. All six reads are shown at once — none of them is hidden behind a toggle.
Balanced
WLDNWLDN on the overall AIQ Score, which weights Quality and Value most heavily.
Growth
WLDNWLDN on combined revenue and EPS growth.
Value
WLDNWLDN on the peer-relative Value factor, by 26 points.
Momentum
WLDNWLDN on the Momentum factor, by 6 points.
Lower downside
WLDNWLDN on Risk Resilience, by 8 points.
Analyst upside
AAONAAON on implied upside to the consensus price target.
AIQ vs Wall Street
The model and the Street disagree here: AIQ favors WLDN, analyst targets favor AAON. That disagreement is the most useful thing on this page.
| Measure | AAON | WLDN | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Implied upside to target | +47.9% | +33.8% | AAON has more room |
| Target dispersion | 0% | 0% | Lower is tighter analyst agreement |
| Consensus | Buy | Buy | Context, not a primary driver |
| Analysts covering | 1 | 1 | Higher coverage generally improves confidence |
The two are measuring different things. The AIQ Score reads current fundamentals, valuation, trend and risk; analyst targets price forward expectations. A divergence of this kind is either a contrarian opportunity or a sign the model is missing something already priced in — it is worth resolving before acting on either.
Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions. Dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.
AIQ Agreement Matrix
5 of 6 covered evidence groups favor WLDN. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.
| Evidence group | Favors | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| AIQ Score | WLDN | 44 vs 58 |
| Fundamentals | WLDNon balance | revenue growth 26.2% vs 48.9%; EPS growth 40.8% vs 179.3%; TTM ROE 17.2% vs 20.9%; gross margin 25.6% vs 37.8%; operating margin 11.1% vs 7.1% — WLDN takes 4 of 5 decided legs, not all of them |
| Valuation | WLDN | Value 40 vs 66 |
| Technicals | WLDN | Price vs 50-day -14% vs 3.8%; vs 200-day -22.2% vs -11.5% |
| Risk Resilience | WLDN | Risk Resilience 49 vs 57 |
| Analyst expectations | AAON | Target upside 47.9% vs 33.8% |
✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of AAON and WLDN and are excluded from the count.
AIQ Decision Stability
The two are close enough that your objective, not the score, should decide.
- The AIQ gap is wide at 14 points. (supports the conclusion holding)
- 5 of 6 covered evidence groups point the same way. (supports the conclusion holding)
- The leader's advantage has been narrowing. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
- The leader is throwing conflicting signals. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
Stability combines the score gap, how broadly the evidence agrees, how steady the lead has been across daily snapshots, the current signal state on both names, and analyst dispersion on WLDN.
How the comparison changed
119 daily snapshots · May 4 – Sep 10WLDN lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 25 to 14 points over 30 sessions.
- Today
- WLDN +14
- 44 vs 58
- 7 sessions ago
- WLDN +22
- 42 vs 64
- 30 sessions ago
- WLDN +25
- 41 vs 66
- 90 sessions ago
- WLDN +14
- 38 vs 52
The lead has not changed hands in this window.
AIQ Signal Divergence
Only the signals that bear on the head-to-head. A conflicted name is carrying bullish and bearish rules at the same time — the technical evidence is not pointing one way.
1 bullish / 3 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted
- Death Cross Active — bearish, trend, long horizon (6.04%)
- 52-Week Low Proximity — bearish, risk, long horizon (2.1%)
- Downtrend Structure Active — bearish, trend, long horizon
1 bullish / 2 bearish / 2 neutral, conflicted
- Death Cross Active — bearish, trend, long horizon (16.93%)
- Bollinger Band Squeeze — neutral, volatility, short horizon
- BB Lower Band Breach — bullish, volatility, short horizon
WLDN leads the comparison while carrying a conflicted signal state, which is one reason the stability rating is not higher.
Price vs model alignment
Whether the latest session's price move confirms what the model did over the same session, or contradicts it.
Neither the price nor the AIQ Score moved enough in the latest session to confirm or contradict the other (price +4.28%, AIQ 0 points).
Price is up while the AIQ Score moved down 1 points over the same session — price and model disagree (price +0.33%, AIQ -1 points).
What would flip this result
A state, not a forecast. These are the specific, observable changes that would reverse the verdict — not a price prediction.
- 1AAON closes the Value gap — currently 26 points behind, the largest single contributor to WLDN's edge.
- 2AAON's Death Cross Active resolves — a bearish trend rule currently active against it.
- 3WLDN's conflicting signal state resolves bearish — it currently carries 1 bullish and 2 bearish rules at once.
- 4The narrowing continues — the lead has already given back 11 points over 30 sessions, and a further 14-point move would eliminate WLDN's advantage entirely.
The full evidence
Every number behind the verdict. The leader is called above each group so you are not left to solve it from the table.
Fundamentals
WLDN leads on balance| Metric | AAON | WLDN |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth (YoY) | 26.2% | 48.9% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | 40.8% | 179.3% |
| Gross margin | 25.6% | 37.8% |
| Operating margin | 11.1% | 7.1% |
| Return on equity (TTM) | 17.2% | 20.9% |
| Debt to equity | 0.46 | 0.25 |
Performance
Split across windows| Metric | AAON | WLDN |
|---|---|---|
| 1 week (5 sessions) | 2.5% | -6.4% |
| 1 month (20 sessions) | -10.2% | -3.5% |
| 3 months (63 sessions) | -36.8% | -15.3% |
| 6 months (126 sessions) | -16.4% | -2.4% |
| Year to date | 0.4% | -21% |
| 1 year (252 sessions) | -5.4% | -16.1% |
Technicals
WLDN has the stronger structure| Metric | AAON | WLDN |
|---|---|---|
| RSI (14) | 39.9 | 38.6 |
| ADX (14) | 31.2 | 22.7 |
| Price vs 50-day | -14% | 3.8% |
| Price vs 200-day | -22.2% | -11.5% |
| Volatility (1M, annualized) | 43.4% | 30.8% |
Risk
WLDN is the more resilient| Metric | AAON | WLDN |
|---|---|---|
| Beta | 2.05 | 1.71 |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.2 | 0.01 |
| Sortino ratio | 0.35 | 0.01 |
| Max drawdown | -49.7% | -50.4% |
| Current drawdown | -48.4% | -39.3% |
| Annualized volatility | 61.6% | 61.3% |
| Value at risk (95%) | -6.1% | -4.7% |
Straight answers
Each answer is regenerated from the current snapshot, not written once and left to age.
Which is better, AAON or WLDN?
On the Algovestiq AIQ Score, WLDN is the stronger of the two as of Sep 11, 2026, scoring 58 against AAON's 44. The edge comes from value and quality. This is a systematic score, not a recommendation: it ranks the two on the same evidence, it does not know your holding period or tax position.
Is AAON or WLDN the better buy right now?
WLDN carries the stronger systematic profile as of Sep 11, 2026, and the comparison is rated Competitive — 5 of 6 covered evidence groups agree. A Competitive rating means the two are close enough that your objective, not the score, should decide.
Why does the AIQ Score favor WLDN over AAON?
The composite weights Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk Resilience. WLDN leads Value by 26 points; WLDN leads Quality by 12 points; WLDN leads Risk Resilience by 8 points. WLDN leads on all four AIQ factor dimensions. Value is itself one of those four, so the sweep is not explained by AAON simply being cheaper — it warrants extra scrutiny for unmodeled catalysts, forward expectations or event risk the factors do not capture.
Which has more analyst upside, AAON or WLDN?
Analyst price targets imply +47.9% upside for AAON and +33.8% for WLDN, so the Street currently favors AAON. That points the opposite way to the AIQ Score, which favors WLDN. The two are measuring different things: the model reads current fundamentals, valuation, trend and risk; the Street is pricing forward expectations. A divergence of this kind is either a contrarian opportunity or a sign the model is missing something the analysts have already priced — it is the single most useful row on this page to investigate. Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions, and dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.
Which is better value, AAON or WLDN?
WLDN is the better-valued of the two on the peer-relative Value factor. WLDN on the peer-relative Value factor, by 26 points. The Value factor reads valuation relative to sector peers and to the company's own fundamental quality, so it is not the same as simply having the lower multiple.
Which has stronger growth, AAON or WLDN?
WLDN on combined revenue and EPS growth. Growth here is measured on reported revenue and earnings, not on forward estimates — it describes what the businesses have delivered, not what the Street expects next.
Which has stronger momentum, AAON or WLDN?
WLDN on the Momentum factor, by 6 points. Momentum is one of the four weighted factors in the AIQ composite. It has documented persistence over three- to twelve-month horizons, which makes it a timing input rather than a reason to hold something indefinitely.
Which is riskier, AAON or WLDN?
WLDN is the more resilient of the two, so the other name carries the higher downside risk. WLDN on Risk Resilience, by 8 points. Risk Resilience is a weighted factor in the composite; position sizing usually responds to it more usefully than the buy/avoid decision does.
Is AAON more profitable than WLDN?
The profitability evidence is mixed: gross margin 25.6% vs 37.8%; operating margin 11.1% vs 7.1%; ttm roe 17.2% vs 20.9%. AAON leads on one measure and WLDN on two measures, and there is no single profitability composite that resolves the split — which of the two reads as "more profitable" depends on whether you weight pricing power or operating leverage.
Is WLDN's lead over AAON getting stronger or weaker?
WLDN lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 25 to 14 points over 30 sessions. This is measured from 119 daily comparison snapshots between 2026-05-04 and 2026-09-10. The lead has not changed hands in that window.
What would change the AAON vs WLDN verdict?
The result is a state, not a forecast, so it changes when the underlying evidence changes. Concretely: AAON closes the Value gap — currently 26 points behind, the largest single contributor to WLDN's edge; AAON's Death Cross Active resolves — a bearish trend rule currently active against it; WLDN's conflicting signal state resolves bearish — it currently carries 1 bullish and 2 bearish rules at once; the narrowing continues — the lead has already given back 11 points over 30 sessions, and a further 14-point move would eliminate WLDN's advantage entirely.
What do the current signals say about AAON and WLDN?
AAON: 1 bullish / 3 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted. WLDN: 1 bullish / 2 bearish / 2 neutral, conflicted. A conflicted state means bullish and bearish rules are active on the same name at once — the technical evidence is not pointing one way, and a decision taken on it carries more timing risk. The most decision-relevant rule on AAON is Death Cross Active (bearish, long horizon). On WLDN it is Death Cross Active (bearish, long horizon).
Compare AAON and WLDN with others
Continue your research
This page answers which of the two. These answer the questions on either side of it.
How this comparison is scored
The Algovestiq AIQ Score composites four factors — Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk, each carrying a fixed weight. Sentiment is reported separately as SentimentPulse and is not folded into the composite. Scores refresh every trading day, and this page regenerates from the latest snapshot rather than being written once.
The verdict names a leader, states how broadly six independent evidence groups agree, and rates how durable that conclusion is given the score gap, its recent trajectory and the current signal state on both names.
How to use side-by-side comparison →This comparison is informational and educational, not investment advice. AIQ scores update daily; re-check after earnings, guidance or macro data that materially changes either name’s factor profile.