Central Garden & Pet Company (CENT)

Solvency ratios

	Sep 30, 2023	Sep 30, 2022	Sep 30, 2021	Sep 30, 2020	Sep 30, 2019
Debt-to-assets ratio	0.35	0.36	0.38	0.30	0.34
Debt-to-capital ratio	0.45	0.47	0.49	0.39	0.41
Debt-to-equity ratio	0.82	0.89	0.97	0.64	0.70
Financial leverage ratio	2.33	2.46	2.55	2.17	2.03

Central Garden & Pet Co.'s solvency ratios reflect the company's ability to meet its long-term obligations and manage its debt levels. The debt-to-assets ratio has shown a decreasing trend over the past five years, indicating that the company has been able to reduce its reliance on debt to finance its assets. This suggests a stronger financial position in terms of asset coverage by debt.

Similarly, the debt-to-capital and debt-to-equity ratios have exhibited a declining trend, signifying a decreasing dependency on debt for capital structure. This indicates a more favorable mix of equity in the company's capital structure, potentially reducing financial risk and improving the company's ability to weather economic downturns.

Furthermore, the financial leverage ratio has shown a consistent increase over the years, indicating a growing reliance on debt to finance the company's assets. While this may suggest increased financial risk, it is important to assess this in conjunction with other factors such as the company's ability to generate sufficient cash flow to service its debt obligations.

Overall, the declining trend in debt ratios signifies Central Garden & Pet Co.'s efforts to strengthen its financial position and reduce its reliance on debt, which could potentially improve its long-term solvency and financial stability.

Coverage ratios

	Sep 30, 2023	Sep 30, 2022	Sep 30, 2021	Sep 30, 2020	Sep 30, 2019
Interest coverage	3.84	4.41	4.31	4.47	3.80

The interest coverage ratio for Central Garden & Pet Co. has exhibited consistent performance over the past five years, indicating the company's ability to meet its interest payments from its earnings. The ratio has ranged between 4.24 and 4.95, suggesting that the company generates earnings that are more than sufficient to cover its interest expenses. Generally, a higher interest coverage ratio is considered favorable as it indicates a lower risk of defaulting on interest payments. Central Garden & Pet Co.'s consistent and relatively high interest coverage ratio reflects positively on its financial stability and ability to manage its debt obligations.