Capital Southwest Corporation (CSWC) Financial Ratios
30 years of historical data (1997–2026) · Financial Services · Asset Management
EV/EBITDA
↓
12.91
↓-39% vs avg
5yr avg: 21.07
30Y Low0.7·High53.5
P/FCF
N/A
—
5yr avg: N/A
30Y Low1.4·High78.2
P/B Ratio
↑
1.50
+19% vs avg
5yr avg: 1.25
30Y Low0.2·High1.4
ROE
↑
11.9%
↓+17% vs avg
5yr avg: 10.2%
30Y Low-28%·High34%
Debt/EBITDA
↓
5.77
↓-44% vs avg
5yr avg: 10.26
30Y Low0.5·High38.1
Percentile shows where the current value sits in 30-year historical distribution. Sparklines show 5-year trend.
CSWC Valuation Multiples
Price-based multiples — how expensive the stock is relative to earnings, sales, book value, and cash flow
Capital Southwest Corporation trades at 12.1x earnings, 11% below its 5-year average of 13.6x, sitting at the 82nd percentile of its historical range. Compared to the Financial Services sector median P/E of 13.6x, the stock trades at a discount of 11%.
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market Cap | $1.4B | $1.5B | $1.1B | $1.0B | $534M | $542M | $422M | $206M | $352M | $275M | $268M |
| Enterprise Value | $2.5B | $2.6B | $2.1B | $1.8B | $1.1B | $1.1B | $772M | $495M | $558M | $362M | $271M |
| P/E Ratio → | 12.09 | 11.64 | 15.18 | 12.18 | 16.16 | 12.69 | 8.30 | — | 10.63 | 6.98 | 11.43 |
| P/S Ratio | 5.81 | 5.92 | 6.97 | 6.68 | 5.91 | 5.27 | 5.82 | 13.18 | 5.77 | 4.73 | 6.82 |
| P/B Ratio | 1.50 | 1.44 | 1.29 | 1.35 | 0.90 | 1.29 | 1.26 | 0.76 | 1.08 | 0.89 | 0.94 |
| P/FCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 8.25 | — | — | — |
| P/OCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 8.25 | — | — | — |
P/E links to full P/E history page with 30-year chart
CSWC EV Ratios
Enterprise-value multiples — capital-structure-neutral measures of total business value
Capital Southwest Corporation's enterprise value stands at 12.9x EBITDA, 39% below its 5-year average of 21.1x. The Financial Services sector median is 11.4x, placing the stock at a 13% premium on an enterprise-value basis.
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EV / Revenue | — | 10.40 | 12.55 | 11.54 | 12.73 | 10.29 | 10.64 | 31.74 | 9.14 | 6.24 | 6.88 |
| EV / EBITDA | 12.91 | 13.05 | 24.10 | 19.74 | 26.85 | 21.58 | 13.42 | — | 15.81 | 8.99 | 10.41 |
| EV / EBIT | 13.38 | 13.69 | 25.88 | 20.75 | 28.70 | 22.61 | 13.90 | — | 16.45 | 9.20 | 10.60 |
| EV / FCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 19.88 | — | — | — |
CSWC Profitability
Margins and return-on-capital ratios measuring operating efficiency
Capital Southwest Corporation earns an operating margin of 76.9%, significantly above the Financial Services sector average of 20.3%. Operating margins have expanded from 55.6% to 76.9% over the past 3 years, signaling improving operational efficiency. ROE of 11.9% is modest. ROIC of 7.1% represents adequate returns on invested capital versus a sector median of 5.5%.
Margins
Full margin charts and quarterly trend are on the Earnings History page
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 94.3% | 94.3% | 66.5% | 71.7% | 68.0% | 80.6% | 100.0% | -1.5% | 80.1% | 91.6% | 97.5% |
| Operating Margin | 76.9% | 76.9% | 48.5% | 55.6% | 44.4% | 45.5% | 76.6% | -103.5% | 55.6% | 67.8% | 64.9% |
| Net Profit Margin | 45.9% | 45.9% | 43.1% | 54.8% | 36.6% | 41.6% | 70.1% | -143.3% | 54.1% | 67.7% | 59.6% |
Return on Capital
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROE | 11.9% | 11.9% | 8.6% | 12.4% | 6.5% | 11.3% | 16.7% | -7.5% | 10.4% | 13.2% | 8.4% |
| ROA | 5.6% | 5.6% | 4.1% | 5.9% | 3.0% | 5.0% | 7.7% | -3.9% | 6.8% | 10.6% | 7.7% |
| ROIC | 7.1% | 7.1% | 3.5% | 4.6% | 2.8% | 4.2% | 6.4% | -2.2% | 5.4% | 8.3% | 6.6% |
| ROCE | 9.3% | 9.3% | 4.6% | 6.0% | 3.6% | 5.5% | 8.4% | -2.8% | 7.0% | 10.8% | 8.5% |
CSWC Leverage & Debt
Solvency and debt-coverage ratios — lower is generally safer
Capital Southwest Corporation carries a Debt/EBITDA ratio of 5.8x, which is highly leveraged (35% above the sector average of 4.3x). Net debt stands at $1.1B ($1.1B total debt minus $29M cash). Interest coverage of just 2.8x is concerning — the company has limited headroom to absorb earnings volatility before struggling with debt service.
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debt / Equity | 1.12 | 1.12 | 1.08 | 1.02 | 1.08 | 1.26 | 1.13 | 1.11 | 0.66 | 0.31 | 0.09 |
| Debt / EBITDA | 5.77 | 5.77 | 11.21 | 8.67 | 14.89 | 10.77 | 6.63 | — | 6.12 | 2.37 | 0.96 |
| Net Debt / Equity | — | 1.09 | 1.03 | 0.98 | 1.04 | 1.23 | 1.04 | 1.06 | 0.63 | 0.28 | 0.01 |
| Net Debt / EBITDA | 5.62 | 5.62 | 10.70 | 8.31 | 14.39 | 10.54 | 6.08 | — | 5.84 | 2.17 | 0.10 |
| Debt / FCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 11.63 | — | — | — |
| Interest Coverage | 2.81 | 2.81 | 1.44 | 1.96 | 1.39 | 2.35 | 3.10 | -1.02 | 2.79 | 8.08 | 25.86 |
CSWC Liquidity & Efficiency
Short-term solvency ratios and asset-utilisation metrics
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current Ratio | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3.00 | 3.64 |
| Quick Ratio | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3.00 | 3.64 |
| Cash Ratio | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1.75 | 3.11 |
| Asset Turnover | — | 0.11 | 0.09 | 0.10 | 0.07 | 0.11 | 0.10 | 0.03 | 0.11 | 0.14 | 0.12 |
| Inventory Turnover | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Days Sales Outstanding | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
CSWC Shareholder Yields
Earnings, FCF, buyback, and dividend yields — total returns to shareholders
Capital Southwest Corporation returns 9.7% to shareholders annually primarily through dividends. The payout ratio exceeds 100% at 130.3%, meaning the company is paying out more than it earns — this level is unsustainable long-term without earnings recovery. The earnings yield of 8.3% (inverse of P/E) provides a useful comparison to bond yields when assessing the stock's relative attractiveness to fixed income.
Dividends
Full dividend history and growth charts are on the Dividend History page
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend Yield | 9.7% | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Payout Ratio | 130.3% | 130.3% | 177.6% | 117.8% | 214.9% | 94.1% | 115.2% | — | 128.7% | 47.3% | 25.5% |
Total Shareholder Return Metrics
| Metric | TTM | FY 2026 | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings Yield | 8.3% | 8.6% | 6.6% | 8.2% | 6.2% | 7.9% | 12.0% | — | 9.4% | 14.3% | 8.8% |
| FCF Yield | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 12.1% | — | — | — |
| Buyback Yield | 0.0% | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Total Shareholder Yield | 9.7% | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Shares Outstanding | — | $66M | $51M | $41M | $30M | $23M | $19M | $18M | $17M | $16M | $16M |
Peer Comparison
Compare CSWC with 10 similar companies in its peer group
| Company | Market Cap | P/E | EV/EBITDA | P/FCF | Gross Margin | Op Margin | ROE | ROIC | Debt/EBITDA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 CSWCYou | $1B | 12.1 | 12.9 | — | 94.3% | 76.9% | 11.9% | 7.1% | 5.8 |
 ARCC | $13B | 9.7 | 12.8 | 11.3 | 75.7% | 69.7% | 9.4% | 5.7% | 7.3 |
 GBDC | $3B | 8.7 | 11.8 | — | 81.5% | 78.9% | 9.4% | 5.9% | 7.1 |
 TPVG | $203M | 4.1 | 8.6 | — | 83.5% | 77.9% | 14.1% | 7.2% | 6.2 |
 SLRC | $678M | 7.3 | 11.1 | — | 73.3% | 72.9% | 9.3% | 5.8% | 7.0 |
 PFLT | $742M | 10.4 | 35.5 | 7.8 | 45.6% | 39.4% | 6.8% | 2.1% | 26.3 |
 TRIN | $1B | 8.6 | 11.4 | — | 100.0% | 93.1% | 14.1% | 7.9% | 6.1 |
 OCSL | $1B | 29.7 | 16.1 | 7.2 | 87.2% | 50.4% | 2.3% | 3.7% | 9.8 |
 FDUS | $696M | 7.9 | 10.6 | — | 72.6% | 76.1% | 11.8% | 7.2% | 5.4 |
 MAIN | $5B | 9.2 | 13.6 | 13.6 | 100.0% | 80.7% | 17.0% | 7.5% | 4.7 |
 HTGC | $3B | 8.4 | 14.1 | — | 87.2% | 66.7% | 16.2% | 6.6% | 6.3 |
| Financial Services Median | — | 13.6 | 11.4 | 11.1 | 64.1% | 20.3% | 9.0% | 5.5% | 4.3 |
Peer selection based on competitive and market overlap. Compare multiple stocks →
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CSWC — Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying CSWC stock.
What is Capital Southwest Corporation's P/E ratio?
Capital Southwest Corporation's current P/E ratio is 12.1x. The historical average is 6.3x. This places it at the 82th percentile of its historical range.
What is Capital Southwest Corporation's EV/EBITDA?
Capital Southwest Corporation's current EV/EBITDA is 12.9x. This enterprise value multiple compares the company's total value (equity + debt - cash) to its EBITDA. The historical average is 22.5x.
What is Capital Southwest Corporation's ROE?
Capital Southwest Corporation's return on equity (ROE) is 11.9%. The historical average is 7.8%.
Is CSWC stock overvalued?
Based on historical data, Capital Southwest Corporation is trading at a P/E of 12.1x. This is at the 82th percentile of its historical P/E range. Compare with industry peers and growth rates for a complete picture.
What is Capital Southwest Corporation's dividend yield?
Capital Southwest Corporation's current dividend yield is 9.73% with a payout ratio of 130.3%.
What are Capital Southwest Corporation's profit margins?
Capital Southwest Corporation has 94.3% gross margin and 76.9% operating margin. Operating margin above 20% indicates strong pricing power and cost efficiency.
How much debt does Capital Southwest Corporation have?
Capital Southwest Corporation's Debt/EBITDA ratio is 5.8x, indicating high leverage. A ratio above 4x may signal elevated financial risk.