Crown
Crown's revenue rose 4.8% to $12.4 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 12.6%, up from 12.0% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $1.1 billion, up 41.6%. It paid out $625 million in dividends and buybacks, 56% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 3.1%.
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.
Revenue and margins
Net income and earnings per share
From fiscal 2016 to 2025, earnings per share grew 6.7% a year and net income 4.5% a year, as buybacks cut the share count by 17%.
Returns on capital
Cash flow
Payouts and share count
Valuation
Two ways to value Crown yourself, both starting from its filings: a discounted cash flow model and the price-to-earnings method.
Discounted cash flow (DCF)
A discounted cash flow (DCF) model values a business as the cash it may generate in future, discounted back to today. The starting figures come from Crown's 10-K (or, for net cash and shares, its latest 10-Q) and the assumptions are yours: start from one of three example scenarios, then change any figure to see what it implies for a share, and how that compares with the last share price.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Crown's fiscal 2025 free cash flow of $1.1B, net cash of −$5.2B at December 31, 2025 and 116 million diluted shares, from its filings. The scenarios are fitted to Crown: the base scenario's growth in years 1 to 5 is its revenue growth over the last 3 years, -1.5% a year, kept between 0% and 20%; the cautious and optimistic ones are lower and higher, and growth in years 6 to 10 is halfway to the long-run rate. The base scenario's discount rate is 12%: 11% for a cyclical or higher-risk business (Paper & Plastic Packaging Products & Materials), plus 1 point for unsteady results (a loss in fiscal 2021); the cautious and optimistic ones use a point more and a point less. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $116.71
- Value on these assumptions, against the last close
- —
- Cash flows in years 1 to 10, valued today
- —
- Everything after year 10, valued today
- —
- Plus net cash
- —
- Share of value from after year 10
How the value changes with two assumptions
Price-to-earnings (P/E) method
Another common way to value a company is to multiply its earnings per share by a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple: the number of years of today's earnings an investor pays for a share. A higher multiple usually means investors expect earnings to grow. Choose a multiple, for example from similar companies, to see the value it gives.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Crown's earnings per share of $6.96 (over the last four quarters). Each grows earnings for a year at the cash flow scenarios' rates and applies a multiple to next year's earnings: 16.8×, the middle of Crown's own P/E today, its peers' median and its sector's median (Crown's own P/E today) for the base scenario, 20% less and more for the cautious and optimistic ones. The price is brought back a year at 13%, 12% and 11%. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $116.71
- Value at this multiple, against the last close
- —
- Crown's P/E at the last close
- 16.8×
| Company | Last close | Earnings per share | P/E today |
|---|---|---|---|
| Packaging Corporation of AmericaPKG | $253.74 | $7.70 | 33.0× |
| Avery DennisonAVY | $183.43 | $9.13 | 20.1× |
| CrownCCK | $116.71 | $6.96 | 16.8× |
| Graphic PackagingGPK | $8.76 | $0.66 | 13.3× |
| SonocoSON | $49.27 | $10.20 | 4.8× |
Balance sheet
| Fiscal year end | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash and short-term investments | 531 | 550 | 1,310 | 918 | 764 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | 6,272 | 6,984 | 7,480 | 6,208 | 5,968 |
| Net debt (negative means net cash) | 5,741 | 6,434 | 6,170 | 5,290 | 5,204 |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | 3.6x | 3.5x | 2.8x | 2.6x |
| Debt to equity | 3.3x | 3.8x | 3.1x | 2.2x | 2.0x |
| Interest coverage | 5.4x | 4.7x | 2.9x | 3.1x | 3.9x |
| Current ratio | 1.1x | 1.2x | 1.1x | 1.2x | 1.0x |
| Quick ratio | 0.7x | 0.7x | 0.8x | 0.8x | 0.7x |
Insider trades
Over the 12 months between October 27, 2025 and October 26, 2026, no insider bought Crown shares on the open market, and 3 insiders sold $16.5 million, $9.5 million of it under trading plans set up in advance.
| Date | Insider | Trade | Shares | Price | Value | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 15, 2026 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 7,500 | $110.29 | $827,175 | Form 4 |
| Jun 23, 2026 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 15,000 | $105.00 | $1.6 million | Form 4 |
| Apr 15, 2026 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 7,500 | $106.85 | $801,375 | Form 4 |
| Apr 8, 2026 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 7,500 | $105.00 | $787,500 | Form 4 |
| Feb 23, 2026 | Djalma Novaes JrEVP & COO | Sold | 29,734 | $114.80 | $3.4 million | Form 4 |
| Feb 20, 2026 | Gerard H GiffordEVP & CAO | Sold | 13,373 | $113.98 | $1.5 million | Form 4 |
| Feb 18, 2026 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 7,500 | $110.67 | $830,025 | Form 4 |
| Jan 29, 2026 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 7,500 | $105.00 | $787,500 | Form 4 |
| Jan 5, 2026 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 29,024 | $105.00 | $3.0 million | Form 4 |
| Dec 18, 2025 | Timothy J DonahuePresident & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 8,476 | $105.01 | $890,065 | Form 4 |
| Dec 16, 2025 | Djalma Novaes JrEVP & COO | Sold | 19,754 | $101.02 | $2.0 million | Form 4 |
Piotroski F-score
The F-score counts how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency a company passed in a year (Piotroski, 2000). The more tests passed, the stronger the year: 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.
| Test | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net income is positive | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Cash from operations is positive | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Return on assets rose | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| Cash from operations exceeds net income | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Debt fell relative to assets | Fail | Pass | Pass |
| Current ratio rose | Fail | Pass | Fail |
| Share count didn't rise | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Gross margin rose | — | — | — |
| Revenue rose relative to assets | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| F-score | 4 of 8 | 6 of 8 | 7 of 8 |
| Accruals ratio | −6.8% | −5.3% | −5.6% |
Compare
Put Crown 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crown | FY25 | 4.8% | 12.6% | 9.0% | 13.7% | 2.6x | 7 | |
| Packaging Corporation of America | FY25 | 7.2% | 12.3% | 8.1% | 11.8% | 1.9x | 4 | Compare |
| Avery Dennison | FY25 | 1.1% | — | 8.0% | 14.6% | 2.5x | 5 | Compare |
| Graphic Packaging | FY25 | −2.2% | 9.3% | −0.9% | 7.3% | 4.0x | 4 | Compare |
| Sonoco | FY25 | 41.7% | 13.5% | 4.6% | 9.4% | 2.6x | 5 | Compare |
10 years of figures
| Fiscal year | FY16 | FY17 | FY18 | FY19 | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Income statement | ||||||||||
| Revenue | 8,284 | 8,698 | 11,151 | 11,665 | 9,392 | 11,394 | 12,943 | 12,010 | 11,801 | 12,365 |
| Revenue growth | −5.5% | 5.0% | 28.2% | 4.6% | −19.5% | 21.3% | 13.6% | −7.2% | −1.7% | 4.8% |
| Gross profit | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Research and development | 41 | 39 | 51 | 50 | 48 | 47 | 34 | 33 | 32 | 33 |
| Operating income | 997 | 1,024 | 1,096 | 1,027 | 1,048 | 1,363 | 1,336 | 1,269 | 1,419 | 1,553 |
| Net income | 496 | 323 | 439 | 510 | 579 | −560 | 727 | 450 | 424 | 738 |
| Diluted EPS (US$) | 3.56 | 2.38 | 3.28 | 3.78 | 4.30 | −4.30 | 5.99 | 3.76 | 3.55 | 6.38 |
| Diluted shares (millions) | 139 | 136 | 134 | 135 | 135 | 130 | 121 | 120 | 119 | 116 |
| Cash flow | ||||||||||
| Cash from operations | −134 | −251 | 571 | 1,163 | 1,315 | 905 | 803 | 1,453 | 1,192 | 1,530 |
| Capital expenditure | 473 | 498 | 462 | 391 | 554 | 816 | 839 | 793 | 403 | 413 |
| Free cash flow | −607 | −749 | 109 | 772 | 761 | 89 | −36 | 660 | 789 | 1,117 |
| Dividends paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 105 | 106 | 115 | 119 | 120 |
| Share buybacks | 8 | 339 | 4 | 7 | 66 | 950 | 722 | 12 | 217 | 505 |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 3,912 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 126 | 0 | 0 |
| Stock-based compensation | 20 | 23 | 27 | 29 | 32 | 33 | 29 | 31 | 42 | 48 |
| Balance sheet at fiscal year end | ||||||||||
| Cash and short-term investments | 559 | 424 | 607 | 607 | 1,173 | 531 | 550 | 1,310 | 918 | 764 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | 4,911 | 5,343 | 8,663 | 7,968 | 8,206 | 6,272 | 6,984 | 7,480 | 6,208 | 5,968 |
| Total assets | 9,599 | 10,663 | 15,262 | 12,718 | 16,691 | 13,858 | 14,301 | 15,034 | 13,848 | 14,272 |
| Total liabilities | 8,931 | 9,740 | 13,976 | 13,413 | 14,087 | 11,528 | 12,014 | 12,170 | 10,620 | 10,792 |
| Shareholders' equity | 366 | 601 | 937 | 1,713 | 2,198 | 1,912 | 1,849 | 2,410 | 2,756 | 2,999 |
| Margins and ratios | ||||||||||
| Gross margin | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Operating margin | 12.0% | 11.8% | 9.8% | 8.8% | 11.2% | 12.0% | 10.3% | 10.6% | 12.0% | 12.6% |
| Net margin | 6.0% | 3.7% | 3.9% | 4.4% | 6.2% | −4.9% | 5.6% | 3.8% | 3.6% | 6.0% |
| Free cash flow margin | −7.3% | −8.6% | 1.0% | 6.6% | 8.1% | 0.8% | −0.3% | 5.5% | 6.7% | 9.0% |
| Return on capital | 14.8% | 9.7% | 10.2% | 8.6% | 8.0% | 12.2% | 12.2% | 10.3% | 12.2% | 13.7% |
| Return on equity | — | — | 57.1% | 38.5% | 29.6% | −27.2% | 38.7% | 21.1% | 16.4% | 25.6% |
| Return on assets | 5.0% | 3.2% | 3.4% | 3.6% | 3.9% | −3.7% | 5.2% | 3.1% | 2.9% | 5.2% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3.6x | 3.5x | 2.8x | 2.6x |