Celanese Corp (CE) — payout ratio, three ways
Fiscal year ending 2025-12-31 · sector Materials · computed from SEC filings, not taken from a data vendor.
| Basis | Payout | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|
| GAAP earnings | negative | The company lost $10.64 per share, so there are no earnings to pay a dividend out of and no ratio exists. |
| Operating cash flow | 1.1% | Before capital spending, so it understates the payout that free cash flow shows. |
| Free cash flow | 1.6% | The most honest single-year figure here, because it nets out the capital spending that commodity producers cut hard in a downturn — which is also why it flatters a trough year. |
All bases agree, within a percentage point. No denominator flatters this dividend more than another; there is nothing here that a single headline figure would hide.
The arithmetic
- GAAP earnings — dividends declared per share $0.12 ÷ diluted EPS $-10.64
- Operating cash flow — dividends paid $13.0m ÷ operating cash flow $1,146.0m
- Free cash flow — dividends paid $13.0m ÷ (operating cash flow $1,146.0m − capex $343.0m)
Where the figures came from
- 10-K filed 2026-02-24 · accession
0001306830-26-000031
Every one is public at sec.gov and free to check. That is the point — you should not have to take my word for any of it.
Caveats on this company
- DPS derived from dividends paid ($0.12); no per-share tag filed
Computed by an open pipeline reading SEC XBRL directly. If any number here looks wrong to you, tell me — that is more useful to me than agreement.