Dividend Basis payout ratios, computed from filings

Walter Schloss

Start from book value, avoid leverage, and let the balance sheet decide.

MeasureFormula MedianMiddle half Reporting it
Current ratioCurrent assets ÷ current liabilities1.25x0.89x – 1.79x446
Debt to equityTotal debt ÷ shareholders’ equity0.79x0.39x – 1.45x442

Where each comes from

Current ratioThe balance-sheet screen he applied before anything else: a company that can pay what it owes this year survives long enough for patience to work.
Debt to equityRule fifteen is to be careful of leverage, which he treated as the main way a cheap stock becomes a permanent loss rather than a slow one.

Source: Factors Needed to Make Money in the Stock Market — his sixteen rules.

What this cannot tell you

His starting point is book value against the price — rule three, and rule ten, buying assets at a discount. Book value per share is published on every company page here; the price is yours to supply in the box beside it.

This page describes a published method and applies its measures to filings. It is not a score, not a ranking and not a recommendation, and no page here aggregates these into a verdict. · All 11 metrics