Aaron's (AAN) is a consumer goods and electronics sale and lease company.  Aaron's is the largest consumer goods and electronic leasing company in the U.S. with a market cap of $2 billion; slightly larger than rival Rent-A-Center (RCII) which has a market cap of $1.8 billion. Aaron's is undergoing a transition with the recent acquisition of online consumer products leaser Progressive Financial.

Aaron's has not reduced its dividend payments since 1994. The company currently has a dividend yield of just 0.3%. Aaron's is a Dividend Achiever, as it has increased its dividend payments for 10 or more consecutive years. While Aaron's is a Dividend Achiever, its negligible yield makes it an unsuitable candidate for investors seeking current income.

Business Overview

Aaron's operates in 3 segments:  Sales & Lease Ownership, home Smart, and Progressive.  A revenue breakdown for the company's most recent quarter by segment is shown below to illustrate the relative importance of each segment to Aaron's:

The Sales & Lease segment is Aaron's largest by far.  The segment contains both the company's store operated and franchised Aaron's stores.  In total, the company owns or franchises 2,017 Aaron's stores. The stores generate revenue by selling or leasing (with monthly terms) consumer home goods and electronics.

The Home Smart segment was responsible for just 2% of Aaron's revenue in the third quarter of 2014. The segment consists of 82 company operated stores and 2 franchised locations. The segment differs from the Sales & Lease segment in that it focuses on weekly leases as opposed to monthly leases.

The Progressive segment generated 27% of sales for Aaron's in its most recent quarter. The segment consists of the recently acquired Progressive Financial company operations. The Progressive segment partners with existing retailers to provide financing for consumer goods purchases.