Skip to content
stocks-llm

Debt-to-equity ratio

The debt-to-equity ratio compares how much of a company is financed with borrowed money versus shareholders’ equity — a core measure of financial leverage.

The debt-to-equity (D/E) ratio divides total debt by shareholders’ equity. A D/E of 1.0 means a company is financed with equal parts debt and equity; a D/E of 0.2 means it relies mostly on equity. It is the standard gauge of how much financial leverage — and therefore financial risk — a company carries.

Some debt is healthy and cheap, especially for stable, cash-generative businesses, and "good" levels vary widely by industry: utilities and banks run high leverage by design, while software companies often carry almost none. A very high D/E magnifies both gains and losses and leaves less cushion in a downturn.

stocks-llm computes debt-to-equity from each company’s own latest 10-Q or 10-K balance sheet: total debt (long-term debt including its current portion, plus short-term borrowings and commercial paper; leases excluded) divided by stockholders’ equity, both at the balance-sheet date shown beside the figure. A company whose filing does not report its debt in a form we read gets no figure rather than a zero, and one with negative equity gets none either. Read it alongside profitability measures like ROE, which heavy debt can artificially inflate.

Lowest debt-to-equity companies in the catalog

Lower means less financial leverage. Total debt (leases excluded) over stockholders’ equity, from each company’s latest 10-Q/10-K balance sheet; companies with no figure are left out, never ranked as debt-free.

CompanyDebt / equity
1Sandisk (SNDK)0.00
2Ubiquiti (UI)0.00
3Lululemon Athletica (LULU)0.00
4CACTUS INC CLASS A (WHD)0.00
5NATIONAL HEALTHCARE CORP (NHC)0.00

Live from the catalog, last updated 2026-10-20 — delayed data from SEC EDGAR + market data.

Ask about this →

Return on equity (ROE) →

Related terms

  • Free cash flow (FCF) — Free cash flow is the cash a company has left after running and reinvesting in its business — real, spendable money available to pay down debt, dividends, and buybacks.
  • Free cash flow (FCF) margin — Free-cash-flow margin is the share of revenue a company converts into free cash flow — the cash left after operating costs and capital spending.
  • Current ratio — The current ratio compares a company’s short-term assets to its short-term liabilities — a quick check on whether it can cover its near-term bills.
  • Shares outstanding & float — Shares outstanding is the total number of a company’s shares in existence; the float is the portion actually available for the public to trade.
  • Share buyback (stock repurchase) — A share buyback is a company using its cash to repurchase its own shares, reducing the share count and returning capital to remaining shareholders.

See more terms in the stocks-llm glossary.

Informational only — NOT financial advice. This is an educational definition, not a recommendation to buy or sell anything. Metrics on stocks-llm are delayed data and may be missing or stale. Always verify information independently and consult a qualified financial professional before making any investment decision.