ArcelorMittal South Africa Ltd (ACL.JO) Debt-to-Equity Ratio
As of May 22, 2026
TL;DR — ACL.JO debt-to-equity is -29.56
ArcelorMittal South Africa Ltd (ACL.JO) currently carries a debt-to-equity ratio of -29.56 (negative equity). Interest coverage is N/A and the current ratio is 0.90. Shareholders' equity is negative — usually a sign of accumulated losses or aggressive buybacks. Read the 10-K before interpreting any debt ratio here.
Current leverage profile
Debt / Equity
-29.56
Total debt / shareholder equity
Interest coverage
N/A
EBIT / interest expense
Current ratio
0.90
Short-term liquidity
D/E in isolation is a starting point, not a verdict. To get a credible read on solvency you also want to see interest coverage above 3x (so EBIT comfortably pays interest) and a current ratio above 1.2 (so short-term assets cover short-term obligations). When those two are healthy, even a higher D/E is usually manageable.
5-Year debt-to-equity trend
Historical D/E series is not yet available for ACL.JO.
Industry comparison
The Basic Materials sector median D/E is roughly 0.6. ACL.JO's reading of -29.56 is currently ~5027% below the sector median, which leaves ACL.JO with more financial flexibility than its peers — useful both in downturns and when M&A or buyback opportunities appear..
Compare ACL.JO against every Basic Materials peer in the full sector list.
Interpreting ACL.JO's debt-to-equity
What "Negative equity" means here: Shareholders' equity is negative — usually a sign of accumulated losses or aggressive buybacks. Read the 10-K before interpreting any debt ratio here.
Sector context matters: a D/E of 1.5 in financials or utilities is normal. The same number in software or pharma is a yellow flag. Always anchor your read against the sector median above before forming a view.
Watch the direction: a slowly rising D/E is fine if return on invested capital (see the fundamentals page) is comfortably above the cost of debt. A rapidly rising D/E paired with deteriorating ROIC is the classic distressed-equity pattern.
Stress test: ask yourself what ACL.JO looks like if revenue drops 20% for two years. With its current interest coverage of N/A, can the company keep paying interest? The Altman Z-Score on the fundamentals page is a quick formal version of this question.
Related ACL.JO analyses
Frequently asked about ACL.JO debt-to-equity
What is ACL.JO's debt-to-equity ratio?↓
ACL.JO's current debt-to-equity ratio is -29.56 as of May 22, 2026. That puts it in the "Negative equity" category. Shareholders' equity is negative — usually a sign of accumulated losses or aggressive buybacks. Read the 10-K before interpreting any debt ratio here.
How is debt-to-equity calculated?↓
Debt-to-equity = total debt / shareholders' equity. Total debt usually includes both short-term and long-term interest-bearing borrowings (sometimes called total liabilities in older definitions). We use the FMP "debtEquityRatioTTM" field, which is total debt over equity on a trailing twelve-month basis.
Is ACL.JO's D/E ratio safe?↓
"Safe" depends on the business model. A -29.56 D/E is negative equity. The more important question is cash coverage: with an interest-coverage ratio of N/A and a current ratio of 0.90, ACL.JO can service its debt obligations at the current operating level.
How does ACL.JO compare to the Basic Materials average?↓
The Basic Materials sector median D/E is roughly 0.6. ACL.JO's -29.56 is materially less levered than peers (about 5027% below the median).
When is high debt-to-equity dangerous?↓
High D/E is dangerous when (1) cash flow coverage is weak (interest coverage below 3x), (2) earnings are cyclical or capital-intensive, (3) refinancing exposure is concentrated in the next 12-24 months, (4) the company is paying out a large dividend or running buybacks while issuing more debt. Conversely, high D/E can be perfectly fine for stable-cash-flow utilities, REITs, and regulated financials — context matters.