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Cabot Corporation

Rank #289ValueWatchlistCompare with other stocks

CBT · NYSE · Basic Materials

Cabot Corporation (CBT) — Rank #289 by gross profitability (GP/assets 0.24) · ROE 20.6% · Piotroski F-Score 6 / 9.

As-of 2026-10-30 · CIK 0000016040 · all metrics point-in-time as of the filing date.

About

Cabot Corporation operates as a specialty chemicals and performance materials company.

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It operates through two segments, Reinforcement Materials and Performance Chemicals. The company offers reinforcing carbons that are used in tires as a rubber reinforcing agent and performance additive, as well as in industrial products, such as hoses, belts, extruded profiles, and molded goods; and engineered elastomer composites solutions. It also provides specialty carbons for use in inks, coatings, plastics, adhesives, toners, batteries, and displays; conductive additives and fumed alumina used in lead acid and lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles; fumed silica used in adhesives, sealants, cosmetics, batteries, inks, toners, silicone elastomers, coatings, polishing slurries, and pharmaceuticals; and fumed alumina for use in various products, including inkjet media, lighting, coatings, cosmetics, and polishing slurries. In addition, it offers aerogel, a hydrophobic, silica-based particle to use in various thermal insulation and specialty chemical applications; masterbatch and conductive compound products that are used in automotive, industrial, packaging, infrastructure, agriculture, consumer products, and electronics industries; and inkjet colorants for inkjet printing applications, as well as carbon nanotubes and fumed metal oxides. The company sells its products through distributors and sales representatives in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific.

Cabot Corporation was founded in 1882 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

Industry
Specialty Chemicals
Sector
Basic Materials
State
DE
Filer Category
Large accelerated filer
Fiscal Year End
September 30

Company Snapshot

P/E and dividend yield are the primary valuation lenses for mature businesses.

Market Cap

—

P/E (annual)

—

P/S (annual)

—

P/B

—

P/OCF (annual)

—

Shareholder Yield

—

Employees

4,064

Industry

Specialty Chemicals

Exchange

NYSE

11/12

Flags passed

CBT fails 1 critical flag

Passes 11 of 12 quality flags

  • FAIL
    Revenue declining YoY

    Revenue contracted year over year

  • PASS
    Gross margin holding
  • PASS
    Dilution within 2%
  • PASS
    FCF not negative from investment
  • PASS
    Disclosure consistent
  • PASS
    Operating margin holding
  • PASS
    Free cash flow intact
  • PASS
    Passes safety gate
  • PASS
    Balance sheet stable
  • PASS
    No competitive retreat
  • PASS
    SBC not compressing margin
  • PASS
    No valuation convergence

Strengths Operating leverage expanding · Sequential beat (rev + EPS)

A count of the 12 warning flags that could be evaluated. Unweighted: colour follows the worst flag.

Quality Profile

Profitability

1/1 pass
GP / assets
0.24
Return on equity
20.6%
Gross margin trend
PASS

Safety

1/1 pass
Balance-sheet safety
PASS
Debt / equity
1.29
Current ratio
1.47×
Net cash
-$1.02B

Cash Flow

3/3 pass
Positive FCF
PASS
Cash-backed earnings
PASS
Accruals healthy
PASS
SBC / revenue
0.6%

Growth

1/2 pass
Revenue growth
-7.0%
Piotroski F-Score
6 / 9
Share dilution
-2.7%

Dividend yield and payout ratio are the primary reads at this stage (trailing P/E — see valuation above).

Profitability

Does it make money well?

Warning: Revenue declining YoY · GP/assets 58th percentile of 39 SIC 28 peers

Gross profitability (GP / assets)

0.24

Primary signal (Novy-Marx).

58th pctl of 39 SIC 28 peers

Return on equity

20.6%

Gross margin

25.3%

21st pctl of 39 SIC 28 peers

Revenue growth (YoY)

-7.0%

Gross margin improving

Margin trend vs prior year.

PASS

Operating Leverage

2022202320242025
Revenue vs COGS
Revenue vs OpEx
Op. Income vs Revenue

Growth

Revenue CAGR (3Y)

-4.9%

Revenue CAGR (5Y)

7.3%

Earnings CAGR (3Y)

16.6%

FCF CAGR (3Y)

—

Cash Flow Health

Is the cash real?

No warning flags · FCF 18% above net income

Free cash flow

$391.00M

Operating cash flow minus capex.

Positive free cash flow

PASS

FCF vs net income

18.1%

(FCF − net income) ÷ |net income|. Positive: cash above earnings. Negative: below.

FCF not below net income

Fails when free cash flow is below net income (yellow flag).

PASS

Accruals healthy

Cash-backed earnings.

PASS

SBC / revenue

0.6%

Stock-based comp intensity.

Balance Sheet Strength

Can it survive a storm?

No warning flags · net debt $1.02B, F-Score 6/9

Balance-sheet safety

Composite anti-fragile check.

PASS

Debt / equity

1.29

21st pctl of 35 SIC 28 peers (best = lowest)

Current ratio

1.47×

16th pctl of 39 SIC 28 peers

Quick ratio

—

Net cash

-$1.02B

Cash & equivalents minus total debt.

Piotroski F-Score

6 / 9

Fundamental-strength score (0-9).

Valuation

Is the price reasonable?

No warning flags

Dividend safety

Composite score

3.8 / 5

Good
Payout ratio
29.0%5/5 Strong
FCF coverage
4.07×5/5 Strong
Dividend growth streak
4 yr2/5 Fair
Balance-sheet health
D/E 1.29 · IC 8.17×3/5 Good

Capital allocation quality

Composite score

3.0 / 5

Good
Share count trend(net buybacks)
-2.7%4/5 Strong
Buyback timing
N/AN/A
Dividend growth consistency
4 yr2/5 Fair
Net debt trajectory(deleveraging)
1.2%3/5 Good

Lifecycle Phase History

20202025
Decline
Hypergrowth
Op. Leverage
Value

Price History

CBT+69.3% · +11.1% CAGRSPY+82.9% · +12.8% CAGR

View full financial statements →

Source filings on SEC EDGAR: 10-K annual reports · 10-Q quarterly reports