The Cato Corporation (CATO) Valuation

Valuation

Model-based estimates, not advice. The DCF is the discounted-cash-flow value per share; compare it with the price, not as a target.

DCF fair value

-330.8%

-$5.35

vs $2.32 price

Levered DCF

-$7.72

After debt service

Piotroski score

4 / 9

Average

Altman Z-score

1.82

Grey zone

Rating

C+

Overall 2 / 5

Ratios by fiscal year

Margins and yields are shares of revenue, equity or price; multiples are ×.

Metric	FY2025	FY2024	FY2023	FY2022	FY2021	FY2020	FY2019	FY2018
P/E	-9.84×	-3.45×	-5.78×	6,626.67×	10.01×	-5.18×	10.99×	11.69×
P/B	0.37×	0.4×	0.68×	0.87×	1.37×	1×	1.2×	1.12×
P/S	0.09×	0.1×	0.19×	0.26×	0.45×	0.43×	0.46×	0.43×
EV / EBITDA	76.07×	-30.48×	-66.82×	27.28×	9.99×	-7.52×	9.86×	6.7×
Gross margin	32.5%	31.3%	33.0%	31.4%	39.5%	22.1%	36.5%	35.0%
Operating margin	-2.2%	-4.2%	-2.4%	-0.4%	4.9%	-11.4%	4.5%	3.6%
Net margin	-0.9%	-2.9%	-3.2%	0.0%	4.5%	-7.9%	4.2%	3.6%
Current ratio	1.24×	1.19×	1.29×	1.37×	1.46×	1.6×	1.82×	2.61×
Debt / equity	0.96×	0.9×	0.8×	0.77×	0.73×	0.84×	0.66×	0×
Interest coverage	0×	-459.24×	-487.31×	-36.33×	524.95×	-350.52×	1,286.79×	309.42×
Dividend yield	0.0%	16.3%	10.6%	7.3%	2.9%	3.2%	8.6%	9.1%
Payout ratio	0.0%	-56.5%	-61.8%	35046.3%	28.6%	-17.4%	94.2%	110.1%

Key metrics by fiscal year

Metric	FY2025	FY2024	FY2023	FY2022	FY2021	FY2020	FY2019	FY2018
Return on equity	-3.8%	-11.5%	-11.7%	0.0%	13.7%	-18.4%	10.9%	9.3%
Return on invested capital	-3.5%	-8.4%	-4.7%	-0.0%	7.8%	-9.0%	5.6%	7.7%
Return on assets	-1.4%	-4.1%	-4.6%	0.0%	5.5%	-7.7%	5.1%	5.9%
Free cash flow yield	-9.0%	-42.8%	-9.2%	-3.1%	16.0%	-18.1%	11.8%	15.7%
Earnings yield	-10.2%	-28.9%	-17.2%	0.0%	10.0%	-18.4%	9.1%	8.3%
Enterprise value	$189.1M	$190.1M	$260.3M	$352.9M	$513.4M	$435.5M	$579.3M	$331.7M
Net debt / EBITDA	52.69×	-20.14×	-33.17×	11.96×	3.2×	-3.27×	3.38×	-0.5×
Cash conversion cycle (days)	30	32	24	27	39	42	44	36