The business behind the dividend
| Measure | IRM | Median | Formula |
|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | — | — | Net income ÷ shareholders’ equity |
| Return on capital employed | 7.5% | 10.1% | Operating income ÷ (equity + total debt) |
| Owner earnings | $-1.09bn | $632.00m | Net income + depreciation & amortisation − capital expenditure |
| Free cash flow | $-931.63m | $746.10m | Operating cash flow − capital expenditure |
| Operating margin | 16.9% | 15.0% | Operating income ÷ revenue |
| Net margin | 2.2% | 10.2% | Net income ÷ revenue |
| Debt to equity | — | — | Total debt ÷ shareholders’ equity |
| Interest cover | 1.40x | 4.43x | Operating income ÷ interest expense |
| Current ratio | 0.74x | 1.25x | Current assets ÷ current liabilities |
| Long-term debt to working capital | — | — | Long-term debt ÷ (current assets − current liabilities) |
| Cash conversion | 8.80x | 1.78x | Operating cash flow ÷ net income |
Not computed here: Debt to equity, Long-term debt to working capital, Return on equity — why a blank is not a zero.
Ten years of it
The same measures, for every year the filings support. One year is a fact; a row is a business.
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | Median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | — | — | 88.5% | 88.3% | 52.9% | 30.2% | 18.3% | 19.1% | 7.5% | 5.5% | 30.2% |
| Return on capital employed | 7.5% | 7.6% | 7.6% | 9.4% | 8.4% | 9.5% | 7.7% | 8.1% | 6.8% | 6.1% | 7.6% |
| Operating margin | 16.9% | 16.4% | 16.8% | 20.6% | 19.0% | 22.5% | 49.4% | 50.4% | 16.5% | 14.3% | 16.9% |
| Net margin | 2.2% | 3.0% | 3.4% | 11.0% | 10.1% | 8.3% | 17.0% | 22.1% | 4.5% | 3.1% | 4.5% |
| Debt to equity | — | — | — | 16.60x | 10.83x | 7.66x | 5.92x | 4.38x | 3.07x | 3.23x | 5.92x |
| Current ratio | 0.74x | 0.55x | 0.78x | 0.81x | 0.71x | 0.64x | 0.63x | 0.81x | 1.47x | 1.06x | 0.74x |
| Cash conversion | 8.80x | 6.52x | 5.95x | 1.65x | 1.68x | 2.88x | 3.60x | 2.63x | 4.20x | 5.07x | 3.60x |
How it compares in real estate
Among the 46 real estate companies here measured on funds from operations, Iron Mountain pays out less than 6 of them. The median for that group is 65.5%, against this company’s 81.5%.
Closest on funds from operations
- Gaming & Leisure Properties (GLPI) 78.4%
- Healthpeak Properties (DOC) 80.1%
- CubeSmart (CUBE) 80.6%
- Extra Space Storage (EXR) 81.3%
Same sector and same denominator, so the figures are comparable. All 50 in real estate →