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Covista Inc.

CVSA · Consumer Discretionary · $4.2B mkt cap · FY2025 filings · · not refreshed in 35 days · Shallow moat ·

Doesn't clear the bar

Shallow moat
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The five investor questions

95

2021–2025 (latest 5 aligned FYs; v3 window cap 5): revenue $899M to $1.8B, increasing; diluted EPS 1.36 to 6.18, increasing.

55

Median gross margin 50.7% over 10y, variable.

19

Median ROIC 8.3%, above the 12% hurdle in 14% of years.

54

Net debt/EBITDA 0.9x, interest coverage 7x.

64

Owner earnings changed trend unclear over up to the ten most recent annual observations.

Price vs. value if growth stopped today

A cautious baseline, not a price target: what the shares may support if normalized owner earnings simply hold steady.

Above value if growth stopped todayBelow value if growth stopped today
121% above value if growth stopped today
$170M
$52.53
$52.53
$115.84
121% above value if growth stopped today

What today’s price assumes: owner earnings growing ~17%/yr over 5 years. The zero-growth estimate assumes owner earnings stay flat (0% growth).

How to read this

We solve for the constant annual change in owner earnings that would make the five-year zero-growth estimate equal today’s price. This keeps the existing model inputs and calculation unchanged; it is an expectations lens, not a forecast.

This zero-growth estimate assumes trailing owner earnings persist — unreliable for declining businesses. The recent FY revenue series does not trigger the three-consecutive-declines flag.

Among the current top-score group, the median current price is 239% above the zero-growth estimate across 48 of the current top 50 companies by Moat Score with both values.

Score records captured Jul 26, 2026.

Exactly which 50 companies?

FTNT, META, MEDP, IBEX, MSFT, GOOGL, LULU, ANF, IDXX, TXRH, FHI, QLYS, FFIV, ADBE, LLY, MANH, VEEV, GRMN, SSD, MNST, DOCS, MCO, CPRT, NTAP, LRCX, NVDA, CORT, SFM, MPTI, ULTA, SN, RMD, ROL, PAYC, IRMD, INTU, DECK, MORN, LGCY, DAL, GWW, ISRG, MPWR, CTAS, LOPE, MRK, CMG, FAST, BKNG, ORLY

Missing a usable price or zero-growth estimate: ANF, BKNG.

Model details under moat-index@3.0.0: zero-growth multiple 11.1×, capped-growth comparison at no more than 18×; 9% discount rate; high-end growth 0% (capped at 4%) using min(5y revenue CAGR, 5y diluted-EPS CAGR), clamped to 0%–4%; maintenance capex uses min(capex, D&A); abstain when D&A is unavailable. This is a disclosed model range, not intrinsic value as fact.

18 years of fundamentals

The business, in plain English

Covista Inc. booked $1.8B of revenue in FY2025 in the Consumer Discretionary sector and kept 56.9% of it as gross profit — a high-margin business by that measure. After every other cost, 13.3% of each revenue dollar reached the bottom line.

Across the filed record, revenue grew from $1.5B (FY2009) to $1.8B (FY2025) — about 1.3% a year compounded over 16 years.

It earned 14.9% on invested capital in the latest filed year, FY2025. Across the full 14-year measurable filed record, median ROIC was 10.9%. Over the v3 recent window (7 measurable filed years), median ROIC was 8.3%. The Returns on Capital filter above scores it 19/100.

The balance sheet carried $553M of total debt in FY2025 against $239M of owner earnings — roughly 2.3 years of owner earnings to retire it all. Balance-Sheet Safety scores it 54/100.

Put together: Business Trend is the strongest of the five filters (95/100) and Returns on Capital the weakest (19/100), which is how CVSA lands at 58/100 — a Shallow moat.

This breakdown is generated from the filed numbers and sub-scores above — no outside narrative, no estimates. Where a filing doesn’t disclose an input, the sentence that would need it is omitted instead of guessed.

FY2008–FY2025 · 18 fiscal years, normalized from CVSA’s SEC filings

Sales, as filed$1.8B FY2025
$0$1B$2B2008201420202025
Revenue kept after cost of goods56.9% FY2025
−200%0%2008201420202025
Standard ROIC or separately labeled Operating ROICROIC 14.9% FY2025
0%20%2008201420202025
Cash an owner could take out$239M FY2025
$0$200M$400M2008201420202025

Gaps in a line mean that item isn’t in CVSA’s filings for that year. The series is never interpolated or estimated. The Table view lists every filed value, including operating and net margins, total debt, and share count.

Flagship explainer

How Covista Inc. makes its money

Start with a dollar of revenue and follow what the filing says remains.

revenueBranching filed flows with values and percentages directly labeled. Missing filing concepts are omitted rather than estimated.Revenue$1.8B · 100%Cost of revenue$771M · 43%Gross profit$1.0B · 57%Operating income$342M · 19%Income before tax$299M · 17%Income tax$65.8M · 4%Net income$237M · 13%As of 2025-06-30 · 2 SEC filing sourcesBuy Like Buffett · buylikebuffett.com

Honest partial: the filing did not provide a normalized tag for Research and development, Selling, general and administrative; those components are omitted, not plugged.

Table alternative
Filed lineValue% of revenueSource
$1.8B100%
Cost of revenue$771M43%
$1.0B57%
$342M19%
Income before tax$299M17%
Income tax$65.8M4%
$237M13%
Source: · event Jun 30, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set
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Flagship explainer

What Covista Inc. owns — and owes

Covista Inc.'s filing tags don't support a full breakdown — here's what is filed:

Table alternative
Filed lineValue% of assetsSource
Total assets$2.8B100%
Cash and equivalents$200M7%
$553M20%
Stockholders’ equity$1.4B52%
Source: · event Jun 30, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set

Flagship explainer

What drives Covista Inc.’s return on equity?

ROE is five filed business factors multiplied together.

DuPont return on equity factor treeReturn on equity branches into tax burden, interest burden, operating margin, asset turnover, and the equity multiplier.Return on equity17%Tax burden79%net income ÷ pretax incomeInterest burden87%pretax ÷ operating incomeOperating margin19%operating income ÷ revenueAsset turnover0.65×revenue ÷ average assetsEquity multiplier1.96×average assets ÷ average equityAs of 2025-06-30 · 2 SEC filing sourcesBuy Like Buffett · buylikebuffett.com
DuPont source inputs
InputValueFiscal yearSource
$237MFY2025
Income before tax$299MFY2025
Operating income$342MFY2025
$1.8BFY2025
Ending assets$2.8BFY2025
Beginning assets$2.7BFY2024
$1.4BFY2025
$1.4BFY2024
Source:
  • SEC filingFiling detailsAccession 0001558370-25-010780
· event Jun 30, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set
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Flagship explainer

Where Covista Inc.'s cash went

Covista Inc.’s filing does not supply enough provenance-matched cash-flow lines for a truthful flow chart — here’s what is filed:

Table alternative
Filed lineValue% of cash from operationsSource
Cash from operations$338M100%
Depreciation and amortization$51.9M15%
Source: · event Jun 30, 2025 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026 · annual-row source set

Curated 19-manager tier

Who reported holding Covista Inc.

Delayed public 13F reports for 2026-Q2—not live positions, trades, or recommendations.

0 holding0 exited0 not holding0/19 resolved19 not retrieved

Named manager positions and quarter-over-quarter changes
ManagerReported positionQuarter-over-quarterFiling accession
Abrams CapitalNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Akre CapitalNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Baupost GroupNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Berkshire HathawayNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Brave Warrior AdvisorsNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Dodge & CoxNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
First EagleNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
FundsmithNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Gardner Russo & QuinnNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Gates Foundation TrustNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Mairs & PowerNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Markel / Markel-GaynerNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Oakmark / Harris AssociatesNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Pershing SquareNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Polen CapitalNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Sequoia / Ruane CunniffNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Southeastern Asset ManagementNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Tweedy, BrowneNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved
Yacktman Asset ManagementNot retrievedComparison not retrievedFiling not retrieved

Position size uses shares and filed value from each manager’s 13F. Portfolio weight uses the eligible long-share filing denominator. Changes compare only with the immediately preceding calendar quarter.

Source: Filing source not retrieved · event Jun 30, 2026 · retrieved Jul 26, 2026

Flagship explainer

What Covista Inc. insiders reported

Records still being gathered — partial as of retrieval Aug 30, 2026.

Partial coverage: the incomplete Form 4 walk cannot establish no activity, an activity date, or zero counts.

Moat Score history

16 logged readings since Jul 17, 2026 · append-only, never rewritten

Moat Score over timeLast scored reading of each day, on the 0–100 scale57.6 / 100
0406080100WideNarrowShallowNo moatJul 17, 2026Jul 26, 2026

Breaks in the line mark methodology or normalizer upgrades — readings across versions aren’t compared, so a level shift there isn’t a change in the business.

Tier changesSame-methodology and same-normalizer crossings of the Wide / Narrow / Shallow bars

  1. Normalizer upgraded unstamped (version unknown)moat-xbrl-normalizer@1.1.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 26, 2026
  2. Methodology upgraded moat-index@2.0.0moat-index@3.0.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 23, 2026
  3. Methodology upgraded moat-index@1.2.0moat-index@2.0.0 — readings across versions aren’t comparedJul 20, 2026

Scores are logged append-only and never overwritten — this record cannot be reconstructed retroactively, which is exactly why it’s worth keeping.

Insider activity

Form 4 reports mix P/S market or private transactions with compensation-plan mechanics. Activity casually described as “insider selling” can include compensation mechanics; awards, tax withholding, and option exercises are shown by their exact filed class here, never collapsed into “Bought” or “Sold.”

These are disclosed filing facts and arithmetic aggregates, not a signal or verdict.

This machine-readable surface covers SEC ownership filings from 2003; it does not represent earlier paper-era records.

Records still being gathered — partial as of retrieval Aug 30, 2026.

238 filings were skipped because the SEC primary document returned 404; the omission is disclosed and aggregates are withheld.

Among the rows shown, A/F/M acquisition, payment or withholding, and exercise or conversion rows outnumber S sale rows (25 versus 4). The filing codes alone do not establish that every such row arose from a compensation plan.

Trailing-12-month totals and the 90-day cluster result are withheld because this issuer walk is incomplete.

InsiderShares owned afterDateFiling detail
Gangadharan ManjunathVP, Chief Accounting OfficerOpen-market or private sale (S)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock1,802$137.18$247,1985,083Aug 27, 2026
1 filed lot
  • Table I · Common Stock: 1,802 shares at $137.18 · code S · owned after 5,083 ·
Betz MichaelPres. Walden University & CDOPayment of exercise price or tax liability (F)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock6,558$132.35$867,951See lot detailAug 23, 2026
3 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 945 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 32,341 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 3,302 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 36,359 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 2,311 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 39,172 ·
Betz MichaelPres. Walden University & CDOGrant, award, or other acquisition (A)Table I · Acquired · Common Stock12,444$132.35$1,646,963See lot detailAug 23, 2026
2 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 7,320 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 39,661 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 5,124 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 41,483 ·
Phelan Robert J.Chief Financial OfficerPayment of exercise price or tax liability (F)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock8,871$132.35$1,174,077See lot detailAug 23, 2026
3 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 1,279 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 47,027 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 3,126 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 50,957 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 4,466 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 56,571 ·
Phelan Robert J.Chief Financial OfficerGrant, award, or other acquisition (A)Table I · Acquired · Common Stock17,136$132.35$2,267,950See lot detailAug 23, 2026
2 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 7,056 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 54,083 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 10,080 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 61,037 ·
Gangadharan ManjunathVP, Chief Accounting OfficerPayment of exercise price or tax liability (F)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock936$132.35$123,880See lot detailAug 23, 2026
3 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 188 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 5,083 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 308 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 5,825 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 440 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 6,885 ·
Gangadharan ManjunathVP, Chief Accounting OfficerGrant, award, or other acquisition (A)Table I · Acquired · Common Stock2,550$132.35$337,493See lot detailAug 23, 2026
2 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 1,050 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 6,133 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 1,500 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 7,325 ·
BECK DOUGLAS G.SVP, GC, Corp. Sec & ISSPayment of exercise price or tax liability (F)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock5,452$132.35$721,572See lot detailAug 23, 2026
3 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 784 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 27,760 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 1,922 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 30,080 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 2,746 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 33,394 ·
BECK DOUGLAS G.SVP, GC, Corp. Sec & ISSGrant, award, or other acquisition (A)Table I · Acquired · Common Stock10,302$132.35$1,363,470See lot detailAug 23, 2026
2 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 4,242 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 32,002 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 6,060 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 36,140 ·
Beard, Stephen W.Chairman & CEOPayment of exercise price or tax liability (F)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock66,797$132.35$8,840,583See lot detailAug 23, 2026
3 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 9,621 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 405,576 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 23,543 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 435,177 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 33,633 shares at $132.35 · code F · owned after 477,464 ·
Beard, Stephen W.Chairman & CEOGrant, award, or other acquisition (A)Table I · Acquired · Common Stock129,064$132.35$17,081,620See lot detailAug 23, 2026
2 filed lots
  • Table I · Common Stock: 53,144 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 458,720 ·
  • Table I · Common Stock: 75,920 shares at $132.35 · code A · owned after 511,097 ·
Beard, Stephen W.Chairman & CEOOpen-market or private sale (S)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock3,545$130.345$462,073415,197Aug 11, 2026
1 filed lot
  • Table I · Common Stock: 3,545 shares at $130.345 · code S · owned after 415,197 ·
Phelan Robert J.Chief Financial OfficerOpen-market or private sale (S)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock2,186$135.15$295,43848,306Aug 7, 2026
1 filed lot
  • Table I · Common Stock: 2,186 shares at $135.15 · code S · owned after 48,306 ·
BECK DOUGLAS G.SVP, GC, Corp. Sec & ISSOpen-market or private sale (S)Table I · Disposed · Common Stock4,526$135.81$614,67628,544Aug 7, 2026
1 filed lot
  • Table I · Common Stock: 4,526 shares at $135.81 · code S · owned after 28,544 ·

Source-event as of . Retrieved .

Track record

How Covista Inc.’s moat rated in each of the years we can reconstruct from its filings — scored only on what was knowable at the time — and what its price and returns did afterward. The score never saw a price; the two are joined only in hindsight, for education, not as a signal.

Point-in-time scores 2011–2025, one methodology version · reconstructed from filings on file each Dec 31 — never with hindsight

Point-in-time Moat Score (dot colored by tier)Indexed price (total-return (dividends reinvested))Rated Wide-moat that year

How to read this: each dot is what the engine would have scored CVSA on that December 31; the line below is its total-return price path (dividends reinvested) in the years since.

0406080100WideNarrowShallowNo moatPoint-in-time Moat Score100200Indexed price · log scale (2012 = 100)201120142017202020232026

Two tracks, one timeline: the score has its own 0–100 scale (top), the price its own 100-based scale (bottom) — never a shared axis. The price path is a total-return (dividends reinvested) index built from the same data the forward returns use; gaps in the score line are years with no reconstructed rating (see the table for why). The Table view carries every value.

What followed, in the years it rated Wide

In the 1 year CVSA rated Wide-moat (2011), the median forward total return that followed — measured only after each year’s filings were public — was:

  • 1 year −38% vs the S&P 500’s 15% (price basis) · median over 1 year
  • 3 years 18% vs the S&P 500’s 61% (price basis) · median over 1 year
  • 5 years −14% vs the S&P 500’s 77% (price basis) · median over 1 year

These are medians computed from the data, not a claim about any one year. The company figures are total returns (dividends reinvested); the S&P 500 is the price-only ^GSPC index, which excludes dividends and so understates the index — the gap flatters the company. A quality rating is not a return forecast, and past returns don’t predict future ones. Educational only, not investment advice.

Consumer Discretionary context

#142 of 487 scored Consumer Discretionary companies, ranked by Moat Score.

Nearest peers by Moat Score

  1. #140DKS DICK'S Sporting Goods, Inc.57.9Shallow moat
  2. #141BROS DUTCH BROS INC.57.9Shallow moat
  3. #143LEEN Leopard Energy, Inc.56.8Shallow moat
  4. #144MLR MILLER INDUSTRIES, INC.56.5Shallow moat

Compare CVSA with its nearest peers →All Consumer Discretionary companies on the Index →

Common questions about CVSA

Does Covista Inc. have an economic moat?
Based on its FY2025 SEC filings, the Moat Index scores Covista Inc. (CVSA) 57.6 out of 100 — a Shallow moat. The five questions behind that score begin at 20% each; if exactly one genuinely lacks data, the other four weights are renormalized and disclosed. revenue and EPS trend 95, pricing power 55, returns on capital 19, balance-sheet safety 54, capital allocation 64.
Is CVSA trading below the conservative owner-earnings estimate?
The value if growth stopped today — a zero-growth baseline — is $52.53 per share. It capitalizes normalized owner earnings at a 9% rate and assumes 0% growth. Versus a recent price of $115.84, that is 121% above value if growth stopped today. The model also publishes a capped-growth comparison, but the zero-growth estimate is the cautious baseline. It assumes trailing owner earnings persist and is unreliable for declining businesses. This is an educational estimate from primary SEC filings, not intrinsic value as a fact or investment advice.
How has CVSA's Moat Score changed over time?
The record logs 16 readings since Jul 17, 2026; the latest reads 57.6 out of 100 (shallow moat). No tier changes on record yet. (Methodology or normalizer upgrades on Jul 20, 2026, Jul 23, 2026, Jul 26, 2026 re-based the score; readings across versions aren't compared.) The history is append-only — readings are only ever added, never rewritten.

Scored from primary SEC filings via the public methodology. Educational only — not a recommendation to buy or sell CVSA. See the disclaimer.