Owner Scorecard
An independent research publication · data as of July 9, 2026

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ZKIN, ZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD.

Industrial Machinery capital-intensive Unprofitable

Our core business focuses on providing systematic solutions to construction projects that require sophisticated piping systems.

Leveraging our experience in the industry, we offer urban planners and real estate developers sophisticated pipe and fitting products and engineering expertise, enabling them to bring communities reliable and durable gas and water transmission systems.

Our products are primarily sold in China, but are also exported and distributed in Europe, Africa and Southeast Asia.

Latest annual: FY2025 20-F
ZKIN · ZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD.
I

The business

What it sells, where the money comes from, the kind of company it is.

Revenue · FY2025
$71M
−34.2% YoY · −4% 5-yr CAGR
Vital signs · TTM, with 5-yr average
Revenue $71M 5-yr avg $99M
Gross margin 6% 5-yr avg 5%
Operating margin −6.0% 5-yr avg −13.9%
ROIC −15% 5-yr avg −53%
Owner-earnings margin 0% 5-yr avg −3%
Free cash flow margin 0% 5-yr avg −3%

The business in brief

read the 10-K →

What this business is and what moves its needle, from its own SEC filings.

Situation
Unprofitable. No sustained operating profit across the record; an earnings multiple has nothing to rest on. What the record does show is revenue, the gross-margin trajectory, and the burn against the cash on hand.
What moves the needle
Operating margin has reached 21% at its best but run negative through the cycle (median −2.2%) on a 6.5% gross margin — so the question is which reading is truer: whether the median was pulled below zero by one-off charges, by the cycle, or by spending it is still growing into, and whether it settles back at a profit. Inventory runs near 21% of sales, so how fast it turns back into cash — and the risk of writing it down when demand softens — sits alongside the margin. On its own account, the filing leans hardest on customer concentration, set against the numbers in what the filing emphasizes, below.
Is it a good business?
Return on capital has rarely cleared the cost of capital (median −4%, above 15% in 4 of 10 years). Owner earnings, the cash-based check, have been thin too. This is price-taker territory, where the balance sheet and the cycle matter more than any multiple; the rest is in the 10-K.

Every line is arithmetic on the company's filings, shown in full in the sections below.

II

The record

Ten years of arithmetic, read across the cycle.

The record, 2016–2025

realized figures from each filing · older years to the left
2016’162017’172018’182019’192020’202021’212022’222023’232024’242025’25TTMTTMSep 2025
Income statement
$37M$45M$55M$64M$87M$99M$102M$112M$108M$71M$71MRevenueRevenue
31%29%—24%5%7%7%1%6%6%6%Gross marginGross mgn
$8M$8M$10M$9M($2M)($4M)($4M)($60M)($2M)($4M)($4M)Operating incomeOp. inc.
20.7%18.0%17.5%13.5%−2.2%−3.7%−3.9%−54.2%−1.6%−6.0%−6.0%Operating marginOp. mgn
$5M$6M$7M$8M($837K)($4M)($6M)($61M)($3M)($4M)($4M)Net incomeNet inc.
17%14%16%3%———————Effective tax rateTax rate
Cash flow & returns
($1M)$1M($3M)$8M$460K($3M)($2M)($2M)($7M)$736K$736KOperating cash flowOp. cash
$443K$426K$396K$375K$438K$568K$672K$677K$619K$714K$714KDepreciationDeprec.
($7M)($5M)($10M)($104K)$859K($245K)$3M$59M($5M)$4M$4MWorking capital & otherWC & other
$124K$155K$467K$880K$1M$114K$508K$656K$603K$589K$589KCapexCapex
0.3%0.3%0.9%1.4%1.3%0.1%0.5%0.6%0.6%0.8%0.8%Capex / revenueCapex/rev
($1M)$991K($3M)$8M$22K($4M)($3M)($3M)($7M)$148K$148KOwner earningsOwner earn.
−3.6%2.2%−5.6%12.7%0.0%−3.6%−2.5%−2.3%−6.9%0.2%0.2%Owner earnings marginOE mgn
($1M)$991K($3M)$8M($708K)($4M)($3M)($3M)($7M)$148K$148KFree cash flowFCF
−3.6%2.2%−5.6%11.9%−0.8%−3.6%−2.5%−2.3%−6.9%0.2%0.2%Free cash flow marginFCF mgn
67%70%27%21%-4%-4%-4%-238%-6%-15%-15%ROICROIC
56%28%19%19%-2%-4%-7%-244%-10%-16%-16%Return on equityROE
56%28%19%19%−2%−4%−7%−244%−10%−16%−16%Retained to equityRetained/eq
Balance sheet
$124K$11M$9M$4M$4M$16M$8M$5M$4M$2M$2MCash & investmentsCash+inv
$24M$21M$27M$25M$31M$27M$28M$15M$22M$23M$23MReceivablesReceiv.
$6M$10M$18M$21M$22M$21M$21M$18M$14M$13M$13MInventoryInvent.
$1M$717K$2M$4M$10M$2M$10M$3M$3M$2M$2MAccounts payablePayables
$29M$31M$43M$42M$43M$46M$39M$30M$33M$34M$34MOperating working capitalOper. WC
$39M$54M$64M$59M$65M$79M$67M$43M$63M$46M$46MCurrent assetsCur. assets
———$35M$41M$45M$44M$25M$50M$32M$32MCurrent liabilitiesCur. liab.
———1.7×1.6×1.8×1.5×1.7×1.3×1.4×1.4×Current ratioCurr. ratio
$46M$61M$76M$78M$86M$7K$129M$59M$80M$63M$63MTotal assetsAssets
($124K)($11M)($9M)($4M)($4M)($16M)($8M)($5M)($4M)($2M)($2M)Net debt / (cash)Net debt
5.4×6.5×7.8×7.5×-1.9×-3.1×-1.1×-38.2×-1.4×-12.9×-2.7×Interest coverageInt. cov.
$9M$21M$37M$44M$45M$89M$85M$25M$28M$24M$24MShareholders’ equityEquity
Per share
9.0M11.0M13.6M16.6M16.6M22.6M29.4M4.5M4.9M5.7M6.6MShares out (diluted)Shares
$4.09$4.10$4.03$3.86$5.24$4.39$3.48$24.84$22.04$12.52$10.77Revenue / shareRev/sh
$0.59$0.54$0.52$0.50$-0.05$-0.17$-0.21$-13.64$-0.57$-0.71$-0.61EPS (diluted)EPS
$-0.15$0.09$-0.23$0.49$0.00$-0.16$-0.09$-0.57$-1.52$0.03$0.02Owner earnings / shareOE/sh
$-0.15$0.09$-0.23$0.46$-0.04$-0.16$-0.09$-0.57$-1.52$0.03$0.02Free cash flow / shareFCF/sh
$0.01$0.01$0.03$0.05$0.07$0.01$0.02$0.15$0.12$0.10$0.09Cap. spending / shareCapex/sh
$1.05$1.93$2.72$2.63$2.72$3.92$2.88$5.58$5.74$4.30$3.70Book value / shareBVPS

The diluted share count moved ×1/6.55 into 2023 — shares retired, not a split the totals corroborate — and the per-share figures carry the counts as filed.

Per-share growththe realized rate an owner's share compounded
9-yr5-yr
Revenue / share+13.2%/yr+19.0%/yr
Owner earnings / share—+81.7%/yr
Capital spending / share+25.1%/yr+7.9%/yr
Book value / share+16.9%/yr+9.6%/yr

The record, charted

FY2016–2025

Each measure over its full record; the current point and the worst year marked.

Share count
6Mpeak FY2022
ROIC
−15%low FY2023
Gross margin
6%low FY2023

Owner earnings vs. net income

Owner earningsNet income

The accountant's number, and the cash an owner can take; the gap is the tell.

$148Kowner earningsvs.($4M)net incomelow FY2024

Where the cash went

ReinvestBuybacksDividendsAcquisitionsRetained

Each year's operating cash, by what management did with it: the mix, and how it drifts.

FY2017FY2025

Owner-earnings bridge

FY2021–FY2025cash-flow statement, SEC EDGAR →

Net income is the accountant's number; owner earnings is the cash an owner could take out. The walk between them, off the cash-flow statement, and whether the gap is widening or holding.

In fiscal 2025 the business turned a $4M loss into $148K of owner earnings: more cash than the profit line showed, after the non-cash charges and the capital it put back in.

FY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021
Reported net income($4M)($3M)($61M)($6M)($4M)
Depreciation & amortizationnon-cash charge added back+$714K+$619K+$677K+$672K+$568K
Working capital & othertiming of cash in and out, other non-cash items+$4M−$5M+$59M+$3M−$245K
Cash from operations$736K($7M)($2M)($2M)($3M)
Capital expenditurecash put back in to keep running and to grow−$589K−$603K−$656K−$508K−$114K
Owner earnings$148K($7M)($3M)($3M)($4M)
Owner-earnings marginowner earnings ÷ revenue0%-7%-2%-3%-4%

Owner earnings is the cash an owner could pull out without starving the business: operating cash less the capital it must spend to hold its position .

Maintenance capex is estimated as depreciation where a growing business invests above it; free cash flow is the figure the scorecard's free-cash margin reads.

III

Quality & stewardship

Returns, the balance sheet, capital allocation, and pay.

Owner’s Scorecard

FY2025 20-F · source on SEC EDGAR →

Will it survive?

  • Can it pay its interest? -2.7×
    Does not cover its interest
    Operating income ($4M) ÷ interest expense $2M
    What this means

    A full year of operating profit didn't cover the interest bill. This is the zombie zone: the business depends on refinancing, asset sales, or forbearance to service its debt.

  • How heavy is the debt, net of cash? +$2M
    Net cash, debt-free
    Cash $2M + ST investments $50K − debt $0
    What this means

    Cash and short-term investments exceed every dollar of debt by $2M, on net the company owes nothing, and can act from strength when others can't. Net debt is the leverage figure that matters: the cash is already set against the debt. Strategic or illiquid investments aren't counted here.

  • How long is cash tied up? 176d
    Long (60+ days)
    DSO 118 + DIO 71 − DPO 13 days
    What this means

    Days cash is tied up between paying suppliers and collecting from customers. Lower is better; a long cycle means growth itself eats cash.

Is it a good business?

  • Return on invested capital —
    Not enough data
    Industry peers: median 11%
    What this means

    The filing data didn't include the inputs for this check.

  • Owner-earnings margin 0%
    Positive this year, negative across the cycle
    latest $148K = operating cash $736K − maintenance capex $589K (positive this year), after an earlier loss stretch (10-yr median -3%)
    Industry peers: median 8%
    What this means

    What an owner could take out without starving the business: operating cash less the maintenance capital it must spend to hold its position — Buffett's owner earnings. That's 0% of revenue this year, a -3% median across 10 years.

  • Are earnings backed by cash? $736K
    Loss, but cash-generative
    Net income ($4M) · cash from operations $736K
    What this means

    The company reported a net loss, so a conversion ratio isn't meaningful. What matters then is whether operations still threw off cash, here, they did.

How is the cash used?

  • Where do the earnings go? —
    Not enough data
    What this means

    The filing data didn't include the inputs for this check.

  • Investing or harvesting? 0.82×
    Maintaining
    Capex $589K ÷ depreciation $714K
    What this means

    Descriptive, not a grade. Above ~1× means investing faster than assets wear out (growth, or, sustained for years, today's earnings carrying less depreciation than tomorrow's will). Below means spending less than it's wearing out (efficiency, or a melting asset base). The ratio won't tell you which; the filings will.

Graham’s defensive tests · 0 of 5 met

Graham’s numerical criteria for the defensive investor (The Intelligent Investor, ch. 14), run on the filings. A floor of safety, not a buy signal; many fine modern businesses fail his strictest liquidity rules by design.

  • Adequate size Miss
    Revenue ≥ $2B · $71M
    What this means

    Big enough to weather a storm. Graham's 1972 floor was ~$100M of sales (≈ $700M today); we use a $2B revenue line as a conservative modern stand-in.

  • Strong liquidity Miss
    Current ratio ≥ 2× · 1.44×
    What this means

    Current assets at least twice current liabilities, near-term bills covered without touching the business. Strict by design: many cash-rich modern firms run leaner and miss it, holding their cushion in longer-dated securities.

  • Earnings stability Miss
    A profit every year (10-yr record) · 6 loss years
    What this means

    Graham wanted earnings in each of the past ten years, the stability a defensive owner leans on.

  • Dividend record Miss
    Uninterrupted dividends · none paid
    What this means

    An unbroken dividend was Graham's mark of durability. He wanted twenty years; the filings show about ten, and a single suspension breaks the streak. Non-payers, many fine modern compounders, fall outside his defensive net by design.

  • Earnings growth Miss
    Earnings +33% over the record · −471%
    What this means

    At least a third more earnings than a decade ago, averaging three years at each end. Net income (not per-share), so stock splits don't distort it, buybacks and dilution show up in the share-count line instead.

  • Moderate price —
    P/E ≤ 15 and P/E × P/B ≤ 22.5 · decided by the price
    What this means

    Graham's valuation gate, the wall he kept between a sound business and a sound investment. Three-year average earnings are $-3.43/share (latest year $-0.61), the averaged base the calculator's gate runs on, and book value is $3.70/share. Enter a price in “What the price implies” just below for the P/E, P/B, and whether it clears. But this is the rule Buffett outgrew: there's no hard P/E law, and a wonderful business can deserve a far richer multiple if the thesis holds, treat it as the bargain-hunter's floor, not a verdict on the price.

Durability & moat, 2016–2025

Whether the record’s returns held, and what the capital reinvested earned.

  • Profitable years 4 of 10
    What this means

    Lost money in 6 year(s), look at what happened there before trusting the average.

  • Operating margin 19% → −21% (3-yr avg ends)

    In the filing’s words The filing attributes gains to higher prices but names price competition too — and the margin slipped, so the pressure is winning here.

    What this means

    Through the cycle the operating margin slipped — about 19% early to −21% lately, median −2% — competition or costs are biting in.

  • Worst year 2023 · −54.2% op. margin
    What this means

    Operations went underwater in 2023, understand why before trusting the good years.

  • Share count −5.0%/yr
    What this means

    The share count is shrinking, buybacks are quietly growing your slice of the business.

Does AI threaten the moat?

Low contestability

The moat is physical, regulated or balance-sheet-funded, the kind AI cuts costs within but does not contest.

AI is unlikely to contest a moat that is physical, regulated or balance-sheet-funded; here it reads more as a cost tool than a threat.

Read from the filing's own risk factors, paired with the industry's structure under its SIC code; the durability is read above, the price below.

All figures as filed; the source filing is linked above.

Current Position

as of fiscal year-end, Sep 30, 2025

Can the business pay what it owes this year, off the freshest balance sheet: the quality of the assets, the debt actually coming due, and what a low ratio means here.

Current assets$46M
  • Cash & short-term investments$2M
  • Receivables$23M
  • Inventory$13M
  • Other current assets$7M
Current liabilities$32M
  • Accounts payable$2M
  • Other current liabilities$29M
Current ratio1.44×all current assets ÷ what's due · Graham looked for 2×
Quick ratio1.02×stricter: inventory excluded
Cash ratio0.07×strictest: cash alone against what's due
Working capital$14Mthe cushion left after near-term bills
Deeper floors
Tangible book value$23Mequity stripped of goodwill & intangibles
Net current asset value$7MGraham's net-net: current assets less all liabilities
Debt incl. operating leases$52K$52K of it operating leases
Deferred revenue$1Mcustomer cash collected before delivery; operating float

From the company's latest filing.

Peers, Industrial Machinery

The same industry, side by side on owner economics. Each figure is a through-cycle median, so a peak or trough year can’t distort it; the group median at the foot is the line to read each against.

CompanyRevenueGross marginOp. marginROICOwner earn. margin
CXTCrane NXT Co.$1.7B40%14.4%14%11%
MWAMueller Water Products$1.4B33%12.6%11%8%
HLIOHelios Technologies Inc.$839M37%15.2%8%12%
PRLBProto Labs Inc.$533M48%11.0%7%15%
NPKNational Presto Industries Inc.$504M22%13.2%11%7%
XPELXPEL Inc.$476M38%14.4%31%8%
ZKINZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD.$71M7%-1.9%-4%-2%
SMRNuScale Power Corporation$31M38%-2069.5%-164%-1370%
Group median—37%12.9%10%8%
IV

The price

What a price has to assume.

What the price implies

reverse-DCF

Enter the home-market price, not the US ADR quote. ZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD. reports in USD, and every figure here (owner earnings, book value, the share count) is on that ordinary-share basis. Enter the price on the same basis: the local-exchange quote per ordinary share. A US ADR price in dollars bundles the ADR-to-ordinary ratio, so it will not reconcile with these figures and would throw the multiple off.

Type today's close and see the owner-earnings growth you'd have to believe to justify it, beside what ZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD. has delivered.

$
Base

—

The assumptions

9.0% = the 4.55% 10-year Treasury (Jul 15, 2026) + 4.45 points of equity premium. The rate you require is yours to set.

Enter a price above to run it.

Implied by the price—
Owner-earnings growth, delivered—
Owner-earnings yield—
P/E (3-yr earnings ’23–’25)—
P/B—
Graham’s price gate—

Graham capped the multiple at 15×; Buffett and Munger let that rule go: a wonderful business can deserve 50× if the thesis holds. The gate marks the bargain-hunter's floor.

Against a high-grade bond: Graham’s yardstick bond yield%

Prefilled with the 10-year Treasury (4.55%, as of Jul 15, 2026). Edit it for today’s exact figure, or a AAA corporate yield.

Graham measured a stock against the bond you could own instead, the heart of his margin of safety. Enter a price above to weigh the owner-earnings yield against this bond.

Owner earnings $148K on 7M shares outstanding, per the 20-F cover, as of 2025-09-30; net cash $2M. The base is the latest year by default; Normalize values it on the through-cycle median owner-earnings margin (to avoid paying on a peak year). Net of stock comp treats option pay as the expense it is. The dials set the multiple a growth belief justifies; the price, and every dollar on this page, is yours.

Weigh ZKIN against another business →

Cite: Owner Scorecard, "ZK INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LTD. (ZKIN), the owner's record," https://ownerscorecard.com/c/ZKIN, data as of 2026-07-09.

Manual order: ← ZKH its page in the Manual ZOOZ →

Industry order: ← ZBRA the Industrial Machinery chapter ZOOZ →