D/E

Business & Finance abbreviation · Finance

D/E
Stands forDebt-to-equity ratio
CategoriesBusiness & Finance

D/E stands for Debt-to-equity ratio, a finance abbreviation.

Leverage ratio equal to total debt, or sometimes total liabilities, divided by shareholders' equity, showing how much a company relies on borrowing relative to owner funding. Higher D/E means more financial risk but potentially higher returns on equity.

Example: After the debt-funded acquisition, D/E rose from 0.4 to 1.3, prompting a ratings review.

Usage notes

Because some analysts count only interest-bearing debt and others all liabilities, figures from different sources differ. Utilities and banks normally run with much higher D/E than technology firms. Also written D/E ratio or debt/equity, and sometimes expressed as a percentage, so 1.3 appears as 130 percent.

More finance abbreviations

  • CAGR – Compound annual growth rate
  • CapEx – Capital expenditure
  • CAPM – Capital asset pricing model
  • CCC – Cash conversion cycle
  • CIM – Confidential information memorandum
  • CVC – Corporate venture capital
  • DCF – Discounted cash flow
  • DCM – Debt capital markets
  • DD – Due diligence
  • DIO – Days inventory outstanding
  • DPI – Distributions to paid-in capital
  • DPO – Days payable outstanding

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