Spire
Through the investors’ lenses
1 of 4 cleared5 of 9 criteria
Each of these investors has said in public what they look at before buying. Click a name to see how this company measures up — a tick where it passes one of their tests, a cross where it does not.
Warren Buffett 2/4
| Measure | SR | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner earnings | $-352.50m | positive | ✗ |
| Return on equity | 8.0% | US median 2.8% | ✓ |
| Debt to equity | 1.14x | US median 0.57x | ✗ |
| Operating margin | 21.2% | US median 3.1% | ✓ |
Passes 2 of 4. These are the measures Warren Buffett published, applied to Spire’s own figures — their criteria, not their view of this company. What he looks at, and why →
Benjamin Graham 1/2
| Measure | SR | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current ratio | 0.32x | 2.00x published | ✗ |
| Long-term debt to working capital | — | 1.00x published | — |
| Positive earnings, ten years running | 10 yrs | 10 published | ✓ |
Passes 1 of 2. These are the measures Benjamin Graham published, applied to Spire’s own figures — their criteria, not their view of this company. What he looks at, and why →
Joel Greenblatt 1/1
| Measure | SR | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Return on capital employed | 7.2% | US median 5.1% | ✓ |
Passes 1 of 1. These are the measures Joel Greenblatt published, applied to Spire’s own figures — their criteria, not their view of this company. What he looks at, and why →
Peter Lynch 1/2
| Measure | SR | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debt to equity | 1.14x | US median 0.57x | ✗ |
| Net margin | 11.0% | US median 2.0% | ✓ |
Passes 1 of 2. These are the measures Peter Lynch published, applied to Spire’s own figures — their criteria, not their view of this company. What he looks at, and why →
| Basis | Payout | Why |
|---|---|---|
| GAAP earnings | 71.9% | whyThe dividend is set against the allowed return on the rate base. |
| Operating cash flow | 31.5% | whyBefore the capital programme the regulator expects. |
| Free cash flow | negative | whyOCF fell $344m short of capex — normal for a utility funding its rate base. |
Spread between highest and lowest: 40.3 percentage points. Same filings, different denominators.
Coverage rating 35 / 100 — Strained. ? Peer standing 15/50Direction 18/30Stability 2/20
GAAP earnings payout, last 6 years
| Fiscal year | Payout |
|---|---|
| 2025-09-30 | 71.9% |
| 2024-09-30 | 72.1% |
| 2023-09-30 | 74.8% |
| 2022-09-30 | 69.4% |
| 2021-09-30 | 52.4% |
| 2020-09-30 | 172.9% |
30% of the 57 utilities here pay out more.
The arithmetic
- GAAP earnings — dividends declared per share $3.14 ÷ diluted EPS $4.37
- Operating cash flow — dividends paid $182m ÷ operating cash flow $578m
- Free cash flow — dividends paid $182m ÷ (operating cash flow $578m − capex $922m)
Where the figures came from
- 10-K filed 2025-11-14 · accession 0001193125-25-282583
Every one is public at sec.gov and free to check. That is the point — you should not have to take our word for any of it.
Caveats on this company
- DPS $3.14 filed as declared, but dividends paid imply $3103918.23 — one of the two underlying facts is wrong. The filed per-share figure is used.
Computed by an open pipeline reading SEC XBRL directly. If any number here looks wrong to you, tell us — that is more useful to us than agreement.
What the GAAP earnings payout ratio measures, and where every company here sits on it.
Also on: rated strained · when it files.
Who else looks like this
Every figure above is computed from Spire’s own filing, and every company here is measured the same way. Screen all of them on any of these twelve measures, or on the rules four investors published — free, and nothing you screen leaves your browser.
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