The Cato Corporation (CATO) Key Metrics
CATO valuation today
Trailing 12 months · as of October 18, 2026- Market cap
- $46.8M
- Enterprise value
- $93.8M
- P/E (TTM)
- — 10-yr median 12.4
- Forward P/E
- 17.2
- PEG ratio
- 1.17
- Price / sales
- 0.1 10-yr median 0.4
- Price / book
- 0.3 10-yr median 1.0
- EV / EBITDA
- 65.3 10-yr median 6.5
- Dividend yield
- —
- Beta
- 0.56
CATO key metrics, FY2017–FY2026
Fiscal year ended January 31, 2026 · U.S. dollarsCATO valuation Price multiples at each fiscal year-end price.
Price / sales−10.4%
0.1
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Price / book−7.0%
0.4
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
EV / EBITDA
53.2
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Free cash flow yield+33.8 pts
−9.0%
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
CATO returns How much profit the business earns on the capital it uses.
Return on equity+6.8 pts
−3.7%
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Return on invested capital+4.2 pts
−4.9%
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Return on assets+2.6 pts
−1.4%
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Free cash flow margin+3.5 pts
−0.8%
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Asset turnover+8.1%
1.50
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
CATO per-share figures Results divided by the shares outstanding at year-end.
Revenue per share+1.6%
$34.30
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Earnings per share
−$0.31
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Free cash flow per share
−$0.27
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Book value per share−2.1%
$8.25
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Dividends per share−100.0%
$0.00
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Shares outstanding−1.0%
19.1M
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
CATO financial health Debt, liquidity and how easily interest is covered.
Debt / equity+6.4%
0.96
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Net debt+$5.9M
$74.1M
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Net debt / EBITDA
29.82
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Current ratio+4.6%
1.24
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Interest coverage
-123.4
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Debt / assets+10.7%
0.36
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
CATO efficiency & capital use Working capital cycle and where the cash goes.
Days sales outstanding−1 days
14 days
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Days of inventory−5 days
80 days
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Days payables outstanding−9 days
63 days
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Cash conversion cycle+2 days
31 days
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
Capex / revenue−0.6 pts
0.6%
FY2026 · hover or tap a bar for each year
FY2017FY2026
CATO valuation history
Fiscal year-endToday10-year median
CATO returns on capital
ROEROICROA
Net income (ROE, ROA) or after-tax operating income (ROIC) divided by the average of the opening and closing balance.
CATO debt vs cash
Total debtCash & short-term investments
Debt includes short- and long-term borrowings and, where reported, lease liabilities.
CATO cash returned to shareholders
DividendsBuybacksFree cash flow
CATO price vs earnings per share
Share price at year-endEPS (right axis)
CATO key metrics
FY2017–FY2026| FY2026 | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 | FY2019 | FY2018 | FY2017 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valuation | ||||||||||
| Market capitalization | $58.1M | $64.5M | $131.1M | $198.1M | $348.8M | $256.2M | $380.8M | $367.8M | $298.4M | $696.9M |
| Enterprise value | $132.3M | $132.7M | $181.2M | $244.2M | $367.4M | $319.0M | $378.9M | $160.4M | $101.5M | $448.5M |
| P/E ratio | — | — | — | — | 10.0 | — | 11.0 | 12.4 | 35.7 | 15.1 |
| Price / sales | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.7 |
| Price / book | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 1.8 |
| Price / free cash flow | — | — | — | — | 6.3 | — | 8.4 | 6.6 | 12.0 | 15.5 |
| Price / operating cash flow | — | — | 274.8 | 14.8 | 5.8 | — | 7.1 | 6.1 | 8.3 | 9.7 |
| EV / sales | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.5 |
| EV / EBITDA | 53.2 | — | — | 18.9 | 7.1 | — | 6.5 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 6.2 |
| EV / free cash flow | — | — | — | — | 6.6 | — | 8.4 | 2.9 | 4.1 | 10.0 |
| Earnings yield | −10.2% | −28.9% | −17.2% | 0.0% | 10.0% | −17.7% | 9.1% | 8.0% | 2.8% | 6.6% |
| Free cash flow yield | −9.0% | −42.8% | −9.2% | −3.1% | 16.0% | −17.4% | 11.8% | 15.2% | 8.3% | 6.4% |
| Dividend yield | 0.0% | 16.3% | 10.6% | 7.3% | 2.9% | 3.1% | 8.6% | 8.9% | 11.3% | 5.1% |
| Shareholder yield (dividends + buybacks) | 1.7% | 22.3% | 12.6% | 14.9% | 9.2% | 10.8% | 11.1% | 12.5% | 24.3% | 11.2% |
| Share price at fiscal year-end | $3.05 | $3.35 | $6.76 | $9.94 | $16.52 | $11.37 | $16.04 | $14.85 | $11.88 | $25.39 |
| Per share | ||||||||||
| Revenue per share | $34.30 | $33.76 | $36.52 | $38.09 | $36.43 | $25.52 | $34.77 | $33.50 | $33.84 | $34.85 |
| Earnings per share | −$0.31 | −$0.97 | −$1.17 | $0.00 | $1.65 | −$2.01 | $1.46 | $1.20 | $0.33 | $1.69 |
| Operating cash flow per share | −$0.08 | −$1.03 | $0.02 | $0.67 | $2.83 | −$1.36 | $2.25 | $2.43 | $1.43 | $2.63 |
| Free cash flow per share | −$0.27 | −$1.43 | −$0.62 | −$0.30 | $2.64 | −$1.98 | $1.90 | $2.26 | $0.99 | $1.63 |
| Cash per share | $4.00 | $4.04 | $5.31 | $6.46 | $7.85 | $6.39 | $8.94 | $8.37 | $7.84 | $9.05 |
| Book value per share | $8.25 | $8.43 | $9.92 | $11.37 | $12.04 | $10.94 | $13.33 | $12.79 | $12.99 | $13.99 |
| Tangible book value per share | $8.25 | $8.43 | $9.92 | $11.37 | $12.04 | $10.02 | $13.33 | $12.79 | $12.99 | $13.96 |
| Dividends per share | $0.00 | $0.55 | $0.72 | $0.72 | $0.47 | $0.35 | $1.37 | $1.32 | $1.34 | $1.29 |
| Capex per share | $0.20 | $0.41 | $0.65 | $0.98 | $0.19 | $0.62 | $0.35 | $0.18 | $0.44 | $0.99 |
| Debt per share | $7.89 | $7.58 | $7.90 | $8.77 | $8.73 | $9.17 | $8.86 | — | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Shares outstanding | 19.1M | 19.2M | 19.4M | 19.9M | 21.1M | 22.5M | 23.7M | 24.8M | 25.1M | 27.4M |
| Change in shares outstanding | −1.0% | −0.7% | −2.7% | −5.6% | −6.3% | −5.1% | −4.1% | −1.4% | −8.5% | −1.9% |
| Returns & profitability | ||||||||||
| Return on equity (ROE) | −3.7% | −10.5% | −10.8% | 0.0% | 13.9% | −16.1% | 10.9% | 9.2% | 2.4% | 11.6% |
| Return on invested capital (ROIC) | −4.9% | −9.1% | −5.2% | −0.6% | 12.3% | −16.6% | 14.6% | 22.9% | 7.5% | 40.4% |
| Return on assets (ROA) | −1.4% | −4.0% | −4.3% | 0.0% | 5.7% | −7.1% | 5.8% | 5.8% | 1.5% | 7.4% |
| Return on tangible assets | −1.4% | −4.1% | −4.6% | 0.0% | 5.5% | −8.0% | 5.1% | 5.9% | 1.6% | 7.6% |
| Free cash flow margin | −0.8% | −4.3% | −1.7% | −0.8% | 7.2% | −7.8% | 5.5% | 6.7% | 2.9% | 4.7% |
| Income quality (OCF / net income) | — | — | — | 326.10 | 1.71 | — | 1.54 | 2.04 | 4.30 | 1.56 |
| Financial health | ||||||||||
| Total debt | $150.4M | $145.9M | $153.1M | $174.8M | $184.3M | $206.7M | $210.3M | — | $0 | $0 |
| Cash & short-term investments | $76.3M | $77.7M | $103.0M | $128.7M | $165.8M | $143.9M | $212.2M | $207.3M | $196.9M | $248.5M |
| Net debt | $74.1M | $68.2M | $50.2M | $46.1M | $18.6M | $62.8M | −$1.9M | −$207.3M | −$196.9M | −$248.5M |
| Debt / equity | 0.96 | 0.90 | 0.80 | 0.77 | 0.73 | 0.84 | 0.66 | — | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Debt / assets | 0.36 | 0.32 | 0.31 | 0.32 | 0.29 | 0.35 | 0.31 | — | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 29.82 | — | — | 3.56 | 0.36 | — | −0.03 | −4.19 | −5.53 | −3.46 |
| Current ratio | 1.24 | 1.19 | 1.29 | 1.37 | 1.46 | 1.60 | 1.82 | 2.61 | 2.68 | 2.58 |
| Quick ratio | 0.70 | 0.60 | 0.77 | 0.82 | 0.95 | 1.13 | 1.24 | 1.77 | 1.80 | 1.73 |
| Interest coverage | -123.4 | -459.2 | -487.3 | -36.3 | 525.0 | -350.5 | — | 309.4 | 163.8 | 317.1 |
| Working capital | $37.4M | $34.9M | $55.1M | $74.7M | $111.5M | $108.6M | $163.5M | $229.5M | $233.4M | $271.9M |
| Invested capital | $231.4M | $230.5M | $242.5M | $272.7M | $272.8M | $309.3M | $314.6M | $109.5M | $129.5M | $135.4M |
| Tangible asset value | $157.3M | $162.3M | $192.3M | $226.6M | $254.2M | $225.9M | $316.5M | $316.8M | $326.4M | $383.1M |
| Net current asset value | −$70.8M | −$66.9M | −$51.4M | −$48.9M | −$23.9M | −$54.4M | −$5.7M | $189.5M | $182.8M | $221.4M |
| Graham number | — | — | — | $0.73 | $21.16 | — | $20.92 | $18.55 | $9.87 | $23.03 |
| Graham net-net per share | −$6.65 | −$7.20 | −$6.19 | −$6.12 | −$5.19 | −$5.30 | −$3.33 | $4.28 | $3.54 | $4.43 |
| Capital allocation | ||||||||||
| Dividends paid | $0 | $10.5M | $14.0M | $14.4M | $10.0M | $7.9M | $32.6M | $32.6M | $33.7M | $35.4M |
| Share buybacks (net) | $995,000 | $3.9M | $2.6M | $15.2M | $22.0M | $19.7M | $9.6M | $13.3M | $38.9M | $42.6M |
| Dividend payout ratio | — | — | — | — | 28.6% | — | 94.2% | 110.1% | 403.1% | 76.6% |
| Dividends + buybacks / free cash flow | — | — | — | — | 57.5% | — | 93.6% | 82.2% | 291.7% | 174.0% |
| Capex / revenue | 0.6% | 1.2% | 1.8% | 2.6% | 0.5% | 2.4% | 1.0% | 0.5% | 1.3% | 2.9% |
| Capex / operating cash flow | — | — | 2,627.3% | 145.3% | 6.9% | — | 15.6% | 7.2% | 30.8% | 37.8% |
| Capex / depreciation | 0.38 | 0.80 | 1.27 | 1.75 | 0.33 | 0.95 | 0.54 | 0.26 | 0.56 | 1.20 |
| Stock-based compensation / revenue | 0.3% | 0.4% | 0.6% | 0.3% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.4% |
| SG&A / revenue | 34.6% | 35.4% | 35.7% | 31.9% | 34.7% | 35.1% | 32.0% | 31.7% | 30.7% | 29.6% |
| Efficiency | ||||||||||
| Days sales outstanding | 14.0 | 15.2 | 14.5 | 19.8 | 25.8 | 25.0 | 12.0 | 12.4 | 12.5 | 12.8 |
| Days of inventory on hand | 80.4 | 85.6 | 81.1 | 83.0 | 82.0 | 81.3 | 81.8 | 81.6 | 85.2 | 83.8 |
| Days payables outstanding | 63.5 | 72.2 | 69.2 | 70.6 | 71.9 | 57.9 | 53.2 | 56.5 | 59.9 | 63.8 |
| Cash conversion cycle (days) | 30.8 | 28.7 | 26.4 | 32.2 | 35.8 | 48.4 | 40.6 | 37.5 | 37.8 | 32.7 |
| Receivables turnover | 26.15 | 23.94 | 25.18 | 18.45 | 14.17 | 14.59 | 30.44 | 29.55 | 29.13 | 28.58 |
| Payables turnover | 5.75 | 5.06 | 5.28 | 5.17 | 5.08 | 6.30 | 6.87 | 6.46 | 6.10 | 5.72 |
| Inventory turnover | 4.54 | 4.26 | 4.50 | 4.40 | 4.45 | 4.49 | 4.46 | 4.47 | 4.29 | 4.36 |
| Asset turnover | 1.50 | 1.38 | 1.36 | 1.28 | 1.26 | 0.90 | 1.39 | 1.63 | 1.51 | 1.53 |
| Average receivables | $25.0M | $27.1M | $28.1M | $41.2M | $54.3M | $39.4M | $27.1M | $28.1M | $29.2M | $33.5M |
| Average payables | $76.8M | $88.2M | $89.9M | $100.8M | $91.7M | $71.1M | $76.4M | $83.4M | $93.9M | $109.2M |
| Average inventory | $97.2M | $104.7M | $105.3M | $118.5M | $104.5M | $99.7M | $117.5M | $120.6M | $133.6M | $143.4M |
| Intangibles / total assets | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 3.5% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
Computed from CATO's annual financial statements (latest annual report filed March 25, 2026) and the closing share price on each fiscal year-end, adjusted for stock splits. Figures in U.S. dollars; data from EODHD. Averages use the opening and closing balance of each year.
CATO valuation and financial ratios
Cato earned a return on equity of −3.7% and a return on invested capital of −4.9% in fiscal 2026. It ended the year with $150.4 million of debt and $76.3 million in cash and short-term investments, net debt of $74.1 million. It returned $1.0 million to shareholders: $0 in dividends and $1.0 million in share buybacks. The share count fell 30.6% from 27.4M to 19.1M over 9 years.
See the CATO income statement, the CATO chart for price history, or the CATO stock overview for the latest quote and news.
CATO key metrics FAQ
What is Cato's EV/EBITDA?
Cato's enterprise value was 53.2 times EBITDA at the end of fiscal 2026 (enterprise value $132.3 million, EBITDA $2.5 million); the current EV/EBITDA is 65.3.
What is Cato's return on equity?
Cato's return on equity (ROE) was −3.7% in fiscal 2026: net income of -$5.9 million on average shareholders' equity of $159.8 million.
What is Cato's ROIC?
Cato's return on invested capital was −4.9% in fiscal 2026, using after-tax operating income divided by average debt plus equity minus cash.
How much debt does Cato have?
Cato had total debt of $150.4 million at the end of fiscal 2026, a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96 and $74.1 million of net debt (29.82 times EBITDA).
Does Cato pay a dividend?
Cato did not pay a dividend in fiscal 2026.
Does Cato buy back its shares?
Yes. Cato spent $1.0 million on net share repurchases in fiscal 2026 Shares outstanding changed −1.0% over the year, to 19.1M..
What is Cato's free cash flow yield?
Cato generated -$5.2 million of free cash flow in fiscal 2026, a free cash flow yield of −9.0% on its market value at year-end ($58.1 million).
What is Cato's current ratio?
Cato's current ratio was 1.24 at the end of fiscal 2026: current assets were 1.24 times current liabilities.