Cars.com Inc (CARS)

Debt-to-capital ratio

		Dec 31, 2023	Sep 30, 2023	Jun 30, 2023	Mar 31, 2023	Dec 31, 2022	Sep 30, 2022	Jun 30, 2022	Mar 31, 2022	Dec 31, 2021	Sep 30, 2021	Jun 30, 2021	Mar 31, 2021	Dec 31, 2020	Sep 30, 2020	Jun 30, 2020	Mar 31, 2020	Dec 31, 2019	Sep 30, 2019	Jun 30, 2019	Mar 31, 2019
Long-term debt	US$ in thousands	460,119	429,679	434,210	438,739	458,249	482,740	495,968	499,182	457,383	470,520	502,357	524,260	576,143	558,720	609,066	763,361	611,277	630,913	644,046	652,178
Total stockholders’ equity	US$ in thousands	492,108	483,010	477,457	384,987	384,430	376,527	391,388	396,087	398,020	394,574	385,456	374,016	368,190	322,373	328,781	347,890	1,141,070	1,141,480	1,569,150	1,592,670
Debt-to-capital ratio		0.48	0.47	0.48	0.53	0.54	0.56	0.56	0.56	0.53	0.54	0.57	0.58	0.61	0.63	0.65	0.69	0.35	0.36	0.29	0.29

December 31, 2023 calculation

Debt-to-capital ratio = Long-term debt ÷ (Long-term debt + Total stockholders’ equity)
= $460,119K ÷ ($460,119K + $492,108K)
= 0.48

The debt-to-capital ratio of Cars.com has been relatively stable over the past eight quarters, ranging from 0.48 to 0.57. This ratio represents the proportion of the company's capital structure that is funded by debt. A higher ratio indicates a higher level of financial leverage and potential financial risk.

It is noted that the debt-to-capital ratio decreased slightly from Q4 2022 to Q3 2023, suggesting a potential decrease in the company's reliance on debt financing compared to its overall capital structure. However, the ratio has remained in the range of 0.48 to 0.57, indicating that debt continues to play a significant role in financing Cars.com's operations.

Overall, the trend in the debt-to-capital ratio of Cars.com suggests that the company maintains a moderate level of debt relative to its total capital, which may indicate a balanced approach to capital structure management.