What financial ratio reveals the nature of a company’s capital structure?

The debt-to-equity ratio reveals the nature of a company’s capital structure by comparing the amount of financing supplied by creditors with the amount supplied by shareholders. A higher debt-to-equity ratio indicates greater leverage and greater reliance on borrowed funds. This can increase return potential when business conditions are favourable, but it also increases financial risk because interest and principal obligations must be met. Price-to-earnings is a valuation ratio, not a capital structure ratio. Return-on-equity measures profitability relative to shareholders’ equity. Debt-to-net-income is not the standard ratio used to evaluate capital structure. In CSC company analysis, debt-to-equity is the direct measure of how a company is financed between debt and equity.