Latest Ratios: P/E Ratio -3.7x · EV/EBITDA 9.1x · ROE N/A. (1996–2025 historical series)
Price-based multiples — how expensive the stock is relative to earnings, sales, book value, and cash flow
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market Cap | $6.6B | $7.7B | $5.2B | $1.8B | $5.3B | $13.4B | $10.5B | $14.2B | $16.1B | $10.5B | $12.9B |
| Enterprise Value | $23.3B | $24.4B | $22.5B | $20.9B | $26.0B | $44.2B | $43.7B | $48.9B | $51.7B | $47.7B | $32.3B |
| P/E Ratio → | -3.68 | — | — | — | — | 6.57 | — | — | — | 7.55 | 20.50 |
| P/S Ratio | 0.53 | 0.62 | 0.40 | 0.12 | 0.30 | 0.68 | 0.51 | 0.66 | 0.69 | 0.59 | 0.74 |
| P/B Ratio | — | — | 11.30 | 4.31 | 0.51 | 1.13 | 0.94 | 1.05 | 0.81 | 0.45 | 0.96 |
| P/FCF | 17.88 | 20.83 | 4.76 | — | 0.52 | 3.72 | 3.76 | 4.64 | 4.19 | — | 7.90 |
| P/OCF | 1.40 | 1.63 | 1.21 | 0.83 | 1.11 | 2.06 | 1.61 | 2.12 | 2.30 | 2.70 | 2.79 |
P/E links to full P/E history page with 30-year chart
Enterprise-value multiples — capital-structure-neutral measures of total business value
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EV / Revenue | — | 1.97 | 1.71 | 1.43 | 1.49 | 2.25 | 2.11 | 2.28 | 2.21 | 2.70 | 1.85 |
| EV / EBITDA | 9.10 | 9.53 | 6.58 | — | 7.80 | 5.10 | 7.71 | 23.26 | 9.09 | 8.02 | 5.17 |
| EV / EBIT | — | — | 19.68 | — | 76.28 | 10.68 | 49.36 | — | 84.24 | 23.58 | 13.83 |
| EV / FCF | — | 65.85 | 20.39 | — | 2.55 | 12.28 | 15.65 | 16.03 | 13.41 | — | 19.87 |
Margins and return-on-capital ratios measuring operating efficiency
Full margin charts and quarterly trend are on the Earnings History page
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 46.5% | 46.5% | 48.9% | 50.9% | 55.0% | 56.9% | 56.9% | 57.4% | 53.7% | 53.5% | 55.5% |
| Operating Margin | -1.5% | -1.5% | 3.5% | -65.8% | 0.5% | 21.8% | 4.6% | -12.7% | 2.4% | 11.4% | 13.3% |
| Net Profit Margin | -14.0% | -14.0% | -0.4% | -70.7% | -8.9% | 10.3% | -5.9% | -24.6% | -7.4% | 7.9% | 3.6% |
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROE | — | — | -12.5% | -190.9% | -13.9% | 17.7% | -10.0% | -31.6% | -8.0% | 7.5% | 4.6% |
| ROA | -5.1% | -5.1% | -0.2% | -25.9% | -3.0% | 3.5% | -2.0% | -7.8% | -2.4% | 2.3% | 1.3% |
| ROIC | -0.8% | -0.8% | 1.9% | -28.4% | 0.2% | 7.4% | 1.6% | -3.9% | 0.7% | 3.2% | 5.2% |
| ROCE | -0.6% | -0.6% | 1.5% | -26.9% | 0.2% | 8.3% | 1.7% | -4.5% | 0.8% | 3.6% | 5.5% |
Solvency and debt-coverage ratios — lower is generally safer
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debt / Equity | — | — | 41.20 | 51.07 | 2.12 | 2.63 | 3.01 | 2.71 | 1.82 | 1.61 | 1.47 |
| Debt / EBITDA | 6.90 | 6.90 | 5.60 | — | 6.60 | 3.60 | 5.93 | 17.33 | 6.34 | 6.35 | 3.15 |
| Net Debt / Equity | — | — | 37.13 | 45.71 | 2.00 | 2.60 | 2.98 | 2.58 | 1.79 | 1.59 | 1.45 |
| Net Debt / EBITDA | 6.51 | 6.51 | 5.04 | — | 6.22 | 3.56 | 5.86 | 16.53 | 6.25 | 6.25 | 3.12 |
| Debt / FCF | — | 45.02 | 15.63 | — | 2.03 | 8.56 | 11.88 | 11.39 | 9.22 | — | 11.96 |
| Interest Coverage | -1.12 | -1.12 | 0.83 | -7.84 | 0.26 | 2.72 | 0.53 | -1.36 | 0.28 | 1.36 | 1.77 |
Short-term solvency ratios and asset-utilisation metrics
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current Ratio | 1.80 | 1.80 | 1.21 | 1.35 | 1.07 | 1.61 | 0.44 | 0.62 | 0.70 | 0.86 | 0.97 |
| Quick Ratio | 1.80 | 1.80 | 1.17 | 1.29 | 1.02 | 1.60 | 0.42 | 0.60 | 0.68 | 0.84 | 0.94 |
| Cash Ratio | 0.23 | 0.23 | 0.52 | 0.63 | 0.26 | 0.05 | 0.06 | 0.23 | 0.09 | 0.11 | 0.04 |
| Asset Turnover | — | 0.36 | 0.39 | 0.43 | 0.38 | 0.34 | 0.35 | 0.33 | 0.33 | 0.23 | 0.37 |
| Inventory Turnover | — | — | 45.91 | 34.18 | 33.34 | 88.42 | 85.09 | 86.99 | 90.52 | 64.09 | 58.01 |
| Days Sales Outstanding | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Earnings, FCF, buyback, and dividend yields — total returns to shareholders
Full dividend history and growth charts are on the Dividend History page
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend Yield | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.6% | 14.8% | 8.1% | 10.5% | 7.8% | 14.3% | 13.9% | 9.1% |
| Payout Ratio | — | — | — | — | — | 53.5% | — | — | — | 104.6% | 186.4% |
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings Yield | — | — | — | — | — | 15.2% | — | — | — | 13.2% | 4.9% |
| FCF Yield | 5.6% | 4.8% | 21.0% | — | 194.2% | 26.9% | 26.6% | 21.6% | 23.9% | — | 12.7% |
| Buyback Yield | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 3.8% | 7.5% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% | 0.1% |
| Total Shareholder Yield | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.6% | 18.6% | 15.6% | 10.5% | 7.8% | 14.3% | 14.0% | 9.2% |
| Shares Outstanding | — | $995M | $988M | $983M | $1.0B | $1.1B | $1.1B | $1.1B | $1.1B | $629M | $541M |
High Debt Maturity Concentration
According to current market data, LUMN trades at an EV/EBITDA multiple of 9.76x, which, when compared to the broader telecommunications sector, suggests that investors are pricing in significant execution risk regarding the company's ability to successfully pivot from legacy copper services to high-growth fiber-based revenue streams.
The negative P/E ratio of -4.62 highlights the lack of consistent bottom-line profitability, rendering traditional earnings-based valuation metrics largely irrelevant for this entity. Investors should monitor the forward EV/EBITDA multiple of 17.80, which appears to imply that the market anticipates a substantial contraction in near-term operating cash flows as the company navigates its ongoing capital-intensive transformation.
Based on reported financial figures, LUMN's ROIC has struggled to maintain positive territory, fluctuating between -2.8% and 2.3% over the last ten quarters, which indicates that the company is currently failing to generate returns on its invested capital that exceed its likely cost of capital.
The persistent volatility in ROIC suggests that the massive capital expenditures required to maintain the aging physical network are not being adequately offset by incremental returns from new fiber deployments. This trend warrants further investigation into whether the company's current asset base can ever achieve the scale necessary to drive meaningful value creation for shareholders.
As reported in recent financial statements, LUMN's asset turnover ratio has remained stagnant at approximately 0.09 to 0.10, revealing a structural inability to generate significant revenue growth from its massive, capital-intensive physical infrastructure compared to more agile, software-focused competitors in the telecommunications services industry.
The erratic nature of the cash conversion cycle, which has swung between positive and negative values, suggests that management is heavily reliant on aggressive working capital management to bridge liquidity gaps. This inconsistency in operational efficiency appears to be a direct consequence of the company's ongoing struggle to balance legacy service churn with the high costs of modernizing its network footprint.
According to recent SEC filings, LUMN's debt-to-EBITDA ratio has exhibited extreme volatility, reaching as high as 213.78 in 2025Q2, which underscores the precarious nature of the company's balance sheet and its heavy reliance on debt restructuring to manage near-term maturity obligations in a high-interest environment.
The interest coverage ratio, which has frequently dipped into negative territory, suggests that the company's ability to service its debt from core operations is highly questionable without continued divestitures or external financing. Investors should monitor the impact of the recent Transaction Support Agreement, as it may provide temporary relief but likely increases the long-term interest expense burden.
As evidenced by the market's reliance on EV/EBITDA, this metric is frequently misapplied to LUMN because it fails to account for the massive, lumpy capital expenditures required to maintain a legacy copper network that is fundamentally different from the modern fiber-to-the-home infrastructure of its peers.
Using standard telco valuation multiples obscures the reality that LUMN is essentially a turnaround play with significant asset-level liabilities rather than a stable utility. A more appropriate analytical framework would involve a sum-of-the-parts valuation that isolates the declining legacy cash flows from the growth potential of the fiber assets, rather than applying a monolithic multiple to the entire enterprise.
Includes 30+ ratios · 30 years · Updated daily
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Quick answers to the most common questions about buying LUMN stock.
Lumen Technologies, Inc.'s current P/E ratio is -3.7x. The historical average is 18.6x.
Lumen Technologies, Inc.'s current EV/EBITDA is 9.1x. This enterprise value multiple compares the company's total value (equity + debt - cash) to its EBITDA. The historical average is 7.9x.
Based on historical data, Lumen Technologies, Inc. is trading at a P/E of -3.7x. Compare with industry peers and growth rates for a complete picture.
Lumen Technologies, Inc.'s current dividend yield is 0.02%.
Lumen Technologies, Inc. has 46.5% gross margin and -1.5% operating margin.
Lumen Technologies, Inc.'s Debt/EBITDA ratio is 6.9x, indicating high leverage. A ratio above 4x may signal elevated financial risk.