CluenexDonaldson Company DCI
Donaldson Company scores good on business quality (6.1 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Donaldson Company does
Donaldson Company makes filtration systems and replacement parts, selling directly to industrial and engine equipment manufacturers who rely on its proprietary filters. It generates steady cash by locking customers into recurring filter replacement cycles.
- What it does best
Donaldson dominates filtration via proprietary media technology that competitors struggle to replicate quickly, yielding a 35.0% gross margin compared to Stanley Black & Decker's 31.4%.
- The main risk
Industrial demand slowdowns threaten replacement parts volume, risking the high-margin revenue streams that anchor its cash flow.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margins hold at 15.5% alongside a 35.0% gross margin, reflecting steady pricing power. Scale benefits are modest, leaving profitability stable rather than expanding.
Proprietary filtration technology locks in industrial and engine clients, earning a return on equity of 27.7% that places it in the top quartile of its sector.
Revenue growth crawls at 5.3%, trailing historical rates as industrial demand softens across core segments.
Debt-to-equity sits at 0.8 while interest coverage hits 16.8x, leaving debt costs manageable. Free cash flow reached $427M. The balance sheet is getting softer as net debt climbed to $1.1B.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
1 sold $3.2M outside pre-planned sales.
Our sealed record on DCI
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Donaldson Company scores good on the Cluenex quality check (6.1 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is fair, moat strong, growth slow and financial health strong.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: 1 sold $3.2M outside pre-planned sales.
Dec 2, 2026.
See DCI today
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Cite this page: Cluenex, “Donaldson Company (DCI)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/dci/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.