Equity Multiplier

What is EM?

A leverage ratio showing how much of a company's assets are financed by shareholders' equity vs. debt.

Think of it like this

Like measuring how much you've leveraged your house - a multiplier of 2 means half is debt, half is equity.

Formula

Equity Multiplier = Total Assets รท Shareholders' Equity
  • Total Assets: Everything the company owns
  • Shareholders' Equity: Net worth belonging to shareholders

Why it matters

  • Part of DuPont analysis for ROE
  • Higher multiplier = more leverage
  • Shows financial risk level
  • Affects return on equity

What's a good value?

1.0-1.5
Conservative
Low debt financing
1.5-2.0
Moderate
Balanced approach
2.0-3.0
Leveraged
Significant debt use
> 3.0
Highly Leveraged
High financial risk

Real-world example

Banks typically have equity multipliers of 10+ due to their business model.

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