Cable One

CABO · NYSE · Communication Services · Financials, fiscal 2016 to 2025

CABO · Last close · November 6, 2026

$4.30

Cable One's revenue fell 5.0% to $1.5 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was −13.8%, down from 28.0% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $278 million, down 26.4%. It paid out $17 million in dividends and buybacks, 6% of free cash flow. The diluted share count rose 0.1%.

Cable One, Inc. Latest fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 10-K filed February 26, 2026 · 0001632127-26-000005 Updated November 9, 2026

Revenue

$1.5B

5.0%

Operating margin

−13.8%

41.8 pts

Net income

−$356M

$14M a year earlier

Free cash flow

$278M

26.4%

Return on capital

−3.4%

10.9 pts

Market cap

$25M

Nov 6 close

P/E

—

Loss: no P/E

Operating margin is operating income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on capital is after-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.

Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.

What Cable One does

Cable One sells internet, video and phone services under the Sparklight brand over a network that uses fiber-based infrastructure. It serves non-metropolitan, secondary and tertiary markets in 24 Western, Midwestern and Southern states. At the end of 2025 it served about 1.0 million residential and business customers out of about 2.9 million passings (homes and businesses its network reaches). About 999,000 subscribed to data, 88,000 to video and 94,000 to voice.

Substantially all of its revenue comes from three product lines. By share of 2025 revenue, residential data is 60.1%, business data is 15.3% and residential video is 12.5%. Video earns much lower margins because programming costs and retransmission fees (what it pays to carry channels) take a large share of video revenue, so it focuses on growing residential and business data.

It says it faces competition from other service providers and from new entrants in video and data, and from local telephone companies and regional overbuilders in fiber services for businesses.

Its biggest risks, as it describes them

Strong competition from other service providers and well-funded new entrants in video and data.
Rapid technology change, and risks in how it uses artificial intelligence.
Rising programming costs and retransmission fees that squeeze video margins or cut demand.
Risks as it puts more focus on selling to business customers.
Getting the hardware, software and support it needs from vendors, with trade policy and tariffs adding risk.

From Cable One's annual report on Form 10-K, filed February 26, 2026, in our words; the 10-K has the full description and every risk factor. Updated with each new annual report.

Income statement

Revenue and net income

US$ billions, fiscal years; net losses in red. Revenue on the left axis, net income on the right; zero is the same line on both.

Revenue (left axis)Net income (right axis)

Gross profit, R&D and operating income

US$ billions, fiscal years. Gross profit is revenue minus the cost of what was sold; research and development is one of the costs paid from it; what remains after all operating costs is operating income. Losses in red.

Gross profitResearch and developmentOperating income

Margins

Percent of revenue

GrossOperatingNetFree cash flow

From fiscal 2016 to 2024, earnings per share fell 21.3% a year and net income 21.5% a year, while buybacks cut the share count by 3%. Cable One then lost money in fiscal 2025.

Diluted earnings per share

US$ per share, fiscal years, restated for any stock splits; loss years in red.

Returns on capital

Return on capital and on equity

Percent. Return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business (debt plus equity, minus cash); return on equity is net income over shareholders' equity. Both use the average of opening and closing balances.

Return on capitalReturn on equity

Balance sheet

Cash and debt

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Debt includes finance leases.

Cash and short-term investmentsDebt

Assets, liabilities and equity

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Assets equal liabilities plus equity; negative equity in red.

Total assetsTotal liabilitiesShareholders' equity

Debt and liquidity ratios

Times. Debt to equity, current assets over current liabilities, and net debt over EBITDA (a full year's).

Debt to equityCurrent ratioNet debt to EBITDA

Five years at a glance

Fiscal year end	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Cash and short-term investments	389	215	190	154	153
Debt incl. finance leases	3,888	3,849	3,680	3,617	3,212
Net debt (negative means net cash)	3,499	3,634	3,490	3,463	3,059
Net debt to EBITDA	4.4x	4.1x	4.0x	4.4x	23.3x
Debt to equity	2.2x	2.2x	2.0x	2.0x	2.2x
Interest coverage	4.0x	3.9x	3.1x	3.2x	−1.6x
Current ratio	1.9x	1.4x	1.7x	1.3x	0.4x
Quick ratio	1.9x	1.4x	1.7x	1.3x	0.4x

US$ millions unless stated, at each fiscal year end. Net debt to EBITDA is debt minus cash, divided by operating income before depreciation and amortization: roughly how many years of those earnings the net debt equals. Debt to equity is debt as a multiple of shareholders' equity. Interest coverage is operating income divided by interest expense. The current ratio is current assets over current liabilities; the quick ratio leaves out inventory.

Cash flow

Cash from operations, capital spending and free cash flow

US$ billions, fiscal years. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; negative years in red.

Cash from operationsCapital spendingFree cash flow

Stock-based compensation and buybacks

US$ billions, fiscal years. Shares paid to employees (stock-based compensation, a cost that uses no cash) against cash spent buying shares back. Buybacks that only match it leave the share count roughly where it was.

Stock-based compensationShare buybacks

Dividends and buybacks

US$ billions, cash paid in each fiscal year

DividendsShare buybacks

Diluted share count

Weighted-average diluted shares, millions

Projections

Project Cable One's revenue, net income and earnings per share five years ahead in a bull, a base and a bear case with your own figures, and see the share prices your P/E estimates give them, or value it with a discounted cash flow model. Every projected figure is yours: it is not a forecast of ours.

Open Cable One's projections

Insider trades

No officer, director or 10% owner of Cable One reported buying or selling its shares on the open market between November 7, 2025 and November 6, 2026.

From Form 4 filings with the SEC. Grants, option exercises and shares withheld for tax aren't counted. Insider trades at all companies

Indicators

Four widely used measures, worked out from the company's filings. The cutoffs are the ones their authors or users go by, not a verdict of ours.

Indicator	FY23	FY24	FY25
Piotroski F-score	7 of 8	4 of 8	3 of 8
Rule of 40	15.8%	18.0%	13.6%
Altman Z''	1.89	1.77	0.36
Accruals ratio	−6.4%	−9.8%	−15.2%

Piotroski F-score: how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency the company passed in the year (Piotroski, 2000); 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Rule of 40: revenue growth plus free cash flow margin; software investors treat 40% or more as the bar. Altman Z'': working capital, retained earnings, operating income and equity weighed against assets and liabilities (Altman, 1995); Altman puts above 2.6 in the safe zone and below 1.1 in the distress zone. Accruals ratio: net income minus cash from operations, over average total assets; lower means profit is backed by cash.

The nine F-score tests

Test	FY23	FY24	FY25
Net income is positive	Pass	Pass	Fail
Cash from operations is positive	Pass	Pass	Pass
Return on assets rose	Pass	Fail	Fail
Cash from operations exceeds net income	Pass	Pass	Pass
Debt fell relative to assets	Pass	Fail	Pass
Current ratio rose	Pass	Fail	Fail
Share count didn't rise	Pass	Pass	Fail
Gross margin rose	—	—	—
Revenue rose relative to assets	Fail	Fail	Fail
F-score	7 of 8	4 of 8	3 of 8

Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.

Compare

Put Cable One side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.

Similar companies

Company	Year	Revenue growth	Operating margin	Free cash flow margin	Return on capital	Net debt to EBITDA	F-score	Compare
Cable One	FY25	−5.0%	−13.8%	18.5%	−3.4%	23.3x	3
GCI Liberty	FY25	3.0%	−33.2%	11.7%	−11.8%	—	—	Compare
AMC Global Media	FY25	−4.5%	5.8%	11.8%	3.9%	5.6x	6	Compare
Liberty Latin America	FY25	−0.1%	2.4%	6.9%	1.0%	7.4x	6	Compare
Liberty Global	FY25	12.4%	−0.5%	−2.7%	−0.1%	6.3x	5	Compare

Each company's latest fiscal year. Fiscal years end in different months, so the periods don't line up exactly. Free cash flow margin is free cash flow as a share of revenue. Net debt to EBITDA is explained under the balance sheet, and the F-score under Indicators.

10 years of figures

Fiscal year	FY16	FY17	FY18	FY19	FY20	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Income statement
Revenue	819	960	1,072	1,168	1,325	1,606	1,706	1,678	1,580	1,501
Revenue growth	1.5%	17.2%	11.7%	8.9%	13.5%	21.2%	6.2%	−1.6%	−5.9%	−5.0%
Gross profit	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Research and development	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating income	187	236	268	310	469	457	539	527	442	−207
Net income	100	235	165	179	304	292	213	225	14	−356
Diluted EPS (US$)	17.38	40.92	28.77	31.12	51.27	46.49	34.73	38.08	2.57	−63.21
Diluted shares (millions)	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6
Cash flow
Cash from operations	257	324	408	492	574	704	738	663	664	563
Capital expenditure	131	179	218	262	293	392	414	371	286	285
Free cash flow	126	145	190	229	281	312	324	292	378	278
Dividends paid	34	37	43	48	57	64	66	66	68	17
Share buybacks	56	0	27	5	0	0	353	100	0	0
Acquisitions	0	728	0	883	38	2,066	0	0	4	0
Stock-based compensation	12	11	10	12	15	20	22	29	32	43
Balance sheet at fiscal year end
Cash and short-term investments	138	162	264	125	575	389	215	190	154	153
Debt incl. finance leases	545	1,195	1,180	1,759	2,197	3,888	3,849	3,680	3,617	3,212
Total assets	1,421	2,205	2,303	3,152	4,488	6,954	6,886	6,760	6,526	5,588
Total liabilities	952	1,528	1,528	2,310	2,993	5,161	5,149	4,950	4,730	4,155
Shareholders' equity	473	676	775	842	1,495	1,793	1,737	1,809	1,796	1,434
Margins and ratios
Gross margin	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating margin	22.8%	24.6%	25.0%	26.6%	35.4%	28.4%	31.6%	31.4%	28.0%	−13.8%
Net margin	12.2%	24.5%	15.4%	15.3%	23.0%	18.2%	12.5%	13.4%	0.9%	−23.7%
Free cash flow margin	15.4%	15.1%	17.7%	19.6%	21.2%	19.4%	19.0%	17.4%	23.9%	18.5%
Rule of 40 (growth + FCF margin)	16.9%	32.3%	29.4%	28.6%	34.7%	40.6%	25.2%	15.8%	18.0%	13.6%
Return on capital	13.1%	18.2%	12.2%	11.4%	13.4%	9.4%	6.9%	8.1%	7.5%	−3.4%
Return on equity	21.7%	40.9%	22.7%	22.1%	26.1%	17.8%	12.1%	12.7%	0.8%	−22.1%
Return on assets	7.1%	13.0%	7.3%	6.5%	8.0%	5.1%	3.1%	3.3%	0.2%	−5.9%
Net debt to EBITDA	1.2x	2.5x	2.0x	3.1x	2.2x	4.4x	4.1x	4.0x	4.4x	23.3x

US$ millions unless stated. Where a later 10-K restated a year, the latest filed figure is shown. Download all figures (CSV, US$ millions)

Source: Cable One's Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR. For information only, not investment advice. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with Cable One.