Cable One, Inc. (CABO) — payout ratio, three ways
Fiscal year ending 2025-12-31 · sector Communications · payout ratios computed from SEC filings, not taken from a data vendor.
| Basis | Payout | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|
| GAAP earnings | negative | The company lost $63.21 per share, so there are no earnings to pay a dividend out of and no ratio exists. |
| Operating cash flow | 3.1% | Before capital spending, so it understates the payout that free cash flow shows. |
| Free cash flow | 6.2% | What is left after maintaining the business. |
Spread between highest and lowest: 3 percentage points. Same filings, different denominators.
Coverage rating 80 / 100 — Comfortable. ? Peer standing 41/50Direction 30/30Stability 9/20
Free cash flow payout, last 6 years
| Fiscal year | Payout |
|---|---|
| 2025-12-31 | 6.2% |
| 2024-12-31 | 18.0% |
| 2023-12-31 | 22.7% |
| 2022-12-31 | 20.5% |
| 2021-12-31 | 20.3% |
| 2020-12-31 | 20.1% |
Among the 27 communications companies here, 81% pay out a larger share on this basis — this is comfortable for the sector.
The arithmetic
- GAAP earnings — dividends declared per share $2.95 ÷ diluted EPS $-63.21
- Operating cash flow — dividends paid $17.2m ÷ operating cash flow $563.3m
- Free cash flow — dividends paid $17.2m ÷ (operating cash flow $563.3m − capex $285.3m)
Where the figures came from
- 10-K filed 2026-02-26 · accession
0001632127-26-000005
Every one is public at sec.gov and free to check. That is the point — you should not have to take my word for any of it.
Computed by an open pipeline reading SEC XBRL directly. If any number here looks wrong to you, tell me — that is more useful to me than agreement.