Burford Capital Ltd (BUR) stock analysis
Close on Nov 11, 2026Market cap $801.48MP/E –Yield 171.23%
StockData Score
Prices as of Nov 11, 2026How the score works
Weak1 of 30 checks passed
Burford Capital passes 1 of the 30 checks behind our score; 20 could not be run for lack of data and count as not passed. Each dot in the shape is one check — hover it for the numbers.
- Valuation
- 0/6
- Growth
- 1/6
- Past performance
- 0/6
- Financial health
- 0/6
- Dividend
- 0/6
What stands out
EPS growing 10%+ a year
Diluted EPS grew 26.0% a year over the last three fiscal years.
What to watch
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was -98.3% over the last twelve months and averaged 7.8% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
Return on capital under 10%
Return on invested capital was -102%, below the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.
Earnings shrank over 5 years
Net income shrank 15.3% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 9.0% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
Valuation0/6
P/E against its history
Not enough price and earnings history to compare.
P/E against the industry
Needs positive earnings and enough profitable companies in the industry.
EV/EBITDA against its history
Needs positive EBITDA and price history.
P/B against the industry
Needs positive book value.
Price against fair value
We could not estimate a fair value: it needs at least two valuation methods with positive inputs.
Margin of safety
Depends on the fair value estimate.
Growth1/6
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 9.0% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
EPS growing 10%+ a year
Diluted EPS grew 26.0% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Earnings growth not accelerating
Net income grew -1987% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of -15.3% a year.
Growing slower than the industry
Revenue grew -402% over the last twelve months; the Finance services median is 9.8%.
Company guidance
No outlook found in earnings releases from the last twelve months.
Gross margin trend
This company does not report gross profit.
Past performance0/6
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was -98.3% over the last twelve months and averaged 7.8% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
Return on capital under 10%
Return on invested capital was -102%, below the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.
Return on equity below the industry
Burford Capital's return on equity of -98.3% is below the Finance services median of -33.5%.
Earnings shrank over 5 years
Net income shrank 15.3% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.
Net margin against its history
Needs five years of revenue and net income.
Net margin against the industry
Needs revenue and net income.
Financial health0/6
Debt level
Needs debt and equity figures.
Debt trend
Needs a balance sheet from five years ago with positive equity.
Debt coverage
Needs operating cash flow.
Interest not well covered
Operating income covers interest expense -7.4 times; we look for at least 5.
Short-term liquidity
The balance sheet is not split into current and non-current items.
Bankruptcy risk (Altman Z)
Needs market value, working capital and retained earnings.
Dividend0/6
No dividend
Burford Capital has not paid a dividend in the last twelve months.
Yield against Treasuries
No dividend.
Yield against the market
No dividend.
Dividend stability
No dividend.
Earnings cover
No dividend.
Cash-flow cover
No dividend.
Fair value
How we estimate itWe don't publish a fair value for Burford Capital. It needs a US-dollar share price, at least two valuation methods with positive inputs (earnings, EBITDA, book value or sales) and, for companies with several share classes, classes that trade at the same price.
An estimate from reported numbers and market multiples, not a price target or investment advice. It can be far off for companies whose profits are about to change sharply.
Market risk
From the past year of daily prices.
Liquidity
Medium risk
- Average value traded per day
- $8.60M
- Value traded per 1% price move
- $2.63M
Downside
High risk
- Typical loss in a bad month
- 47.1%
- Volatility (annualized)
- 71%
- Sharpe ratio, 1 year
- -0.89
- Beta to the S&P 500 (5Y)
- 1.18
Typical bad-month loss, week by week
Margins
Share of revenue, fiscal years 2017 to 2025
Operating margin
Net margin
Growth rates
Compound annual growth to fiscal 2025
| Per year | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years | Five-year pace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | -24.3% | +9.0% | +4.7% | – | |
| Operating income | -40.6% | +6.0% | +2.1% | – | |
| Net income | -57.3% | +27.1% | -15.3% | – | |
| EPS, diluted | -57.6% | +26.0% | -15.5% | – | |
| Dividend per share | -50.0% | -20.6% | – | – |
Returns and balance sheet
9 fiscal years. Hover a measure to see how it is calculated.
| Measure | FY2017 | FY2020 | FY2025 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | – | – | 2.6% | |
| Return on assets | – | 4.5% | 1.0% | |
| Interest coverage | – | 5.3× | 1.5× | |
| Capex to revenue | – | 0.1% | 0.1% | |
| Diluted shares | – | 220M | 225M |
Where the cash went
Fiscal 2021 to 2025, five years combined
Burford Capital generated $1.57B from operations and spent $128.97M on capital expenditure, dividends and share buybacks. 4% of that went back into the business.
DuPont analysis
Return on equity split into margin, efficiency and leverage
| Fiscal year | Net margin | Asset turnover | Equity multiplier | Return on equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | 15.1% | 0.06× | 2.63× | 2.6% |
| FY2024 | 26.8% | 0.09× | 2.55× | 6.2% |
| FY2023 | 56.2% | 0.21× | 2.51× | 30.3% |
| FY2022 | 9.6% | 0.08× | 2.34× | 1.8% |
| FY2021 | -13.2% | 0.06× | 2.03× | -1.7% |
Piotroski F-Score
Nine tests of profitability, balance sheet and efficiency, fiscal 2025 against fiscal 2024
- ProfitableNet income above zero$62.57M
- Cash generatingOperating cash flow above zero-$29.01M
- Return on assets improvedROA up on the prior year2.5% → 1.0%
- Earnings backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income-$29.01M vs $62.57M
- Less leverageLong-term debt to assets fell– → –
- Better liquidityCurrent ratio rose– → –
- No dilutionShare count did not rise223M → 225M
- Gross margin improvedGross margin up on the prior year– → –
- More efficientAsset turnover rose0.09 → 0.07
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