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Santos Limited

STO.AX
35
Oil & Gas Exploration & Production · Energy
Also trades as: STOSF
Exchange
Australian Securities Exchange
Winston Score
35
Winston is serious
Below-average fundamentals — multiple weak pillars.
Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through Jun 30, 2026
How the score breaks down
Quality
Mixed
Growth
Weak
Cash Flow
Strong
Stability
Strong
Valuation
Strong
Dividends
Good

Winston Score History

The full picture

Santos Limited is an Australian oil and gas company that finds, produces, and sells natural gas and crude oil. Its main products are liquefied natural gas (LNG), pipeline gas, and oil, sold to industrial customers, utilities, and energy buyers across Asia and Australia. Santos is one of the largest oil and gas producers in Australia and Papua New Guinea, with major assets including the Darwin LNG and PNG LNG projects.

The company earns money by selling LNG and gas under long-term contracts, as well as selling oil at market prices. Santos operates across Australia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Alaska, generating roughly $25 billion in market value. Its long-term supply contracts and large, hard-to-replicate infrastructure give it some competitive stability. The key growth driver is rising LNG demand from Asian buyers, particularly in Japan, China, and South Korea, while the main risk is falling global energy prices, which can quickly reduce revenue and profits.

Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+2.2% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Slow revenue growth

EPS Growth

-21.4% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Earnings declining

Insider Activity

0.1%ownership

Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

A$1.7B cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↓ Burn rate worsening

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth context

Santos Limited is growing revenue at 2% year-over-year. The Winston Score measures business quality today — these growth metrics show what could matter tomorrow.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

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Quality

Profit per sale
Gross Margin
19.6%
Thin — 19.6% gross margin
Profit after running costs
Operating Margin
16.0%
Healthy — 16.0% operating margin
Return on the money invested
ROCE
4.9%
Weak — 4.9% return on capital

ROIC between 0% and 5%. They earn a few cents back per dollar invested in the business.

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Growth

Sales growth
Sales YoY
-3.2%
Shrinking sales (-3.2% YoY)
Profit growth
EPS YoY
-28.1%
Earnings shrinking (-28.1% YoY)

Earnings per share down more than 10%. Either a bad year, or a real decline.

How steady the profit is
EPS Consistency
1/8 quarters
Earnings rarely grow — volatile business

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash
Cash Conversion
251%
Turns 251% of profit into real cash
Spare cash per sale
FCF Margin
5.0%
Thin free cash flow (5.0%)

FCF margin between 0% and 10%. Some cash from sales, but not a lot.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns
Debt / Equity
0.40
Conservative — low debt load (0.40)
Covers its interest
Interest Cover
4.58x
Adequate interest coverage (4.6x)

Interest coverage between 3 and 8. Profits cover interest several times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit
P/E Ratio (TTM)
26.2x
no trend
Growth-priced — P/E 26.2

P/E above the market average. People are paying up for expected growth.

Cheaper or dearer next year
P/E vs Forward
+14.3
GROWING
Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (26.2 → 12.0)

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Dividends

Dividend
Dividend Yield
4.20%
no trend
Healthy income — 4.20% yield

Generous yield. Worth checking whether the payout is sustainable.

Dividend record
Dividend Growth
-4.2%
no trend
Dividend cut (-4.2% YoY) — warning sign

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