MeritValue

IRON MOUNTAIN INC

IRMdata completeness 100%18 fiscal years on file
The thesis, from the filings

IRON MOUNTAIN INC earns about 0% on invested capital, but has diluted owners by 2% over 5 years — worth asking whether the growth reaches owners. The applicable estimate puts fair value near $6.52 a share.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$4.49B1$5.1B2$5.48B3$6.15B3$6.9B3
Net income$452.7M4$562.1M5$187.3M6$183.7M6$152.3M6
Operating cash flow$758.9M7$927.7M8$1.11B9$1.2B9$1.34B9
Capital expenditure$611.1M10$875.4M11$1.34B12$1.79B12$2.27B12
Free cash flow (derived)$147.8M7$52.3M8−$225.7M9−$594.9M9−$931.6M9
Total debt$18.5B13$21.1B14$23.9B15$27.4B16$32.9B16
Cash & equivalents$255.8M17$141.8M18$222.8M19$155.7M20$158.5M20
Diluted shares291.0M292.4M294.0M296.2M297.8M

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

ii. Your slice — ownership made literal
If you owned
shares
Net assets behind them
−$32.94
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
$5.11
Free cash flow it threw off
−$31.28
Debt you’d be carrying
$1,103.5

10 shares is a claim on −$32.94 of net worth that earned you $5.11 and generated −$31.28 of cash last year, against $1,103.5 of debt.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
0% avg · 5y
FY21 1%FY22 1%FY23 -1%FY24 1%FY25 0%

It earned an average 0% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
+2% shares · 5y

Share count is up 2% over 5 years — owners have been diluted. Worth asking what they got for it. Total debt has risen 77% over the same window.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
Earnings Power Value
$6.52
assumptions (8)
  • riskFreeRate4.7%
  • equityRiskPremium5.0%
  • beta100.0%
  • equityWeight85.0%
  • costOfDebtSpread1.5%
  • taxRate21.0%
  • normalizedEarnings$187.3M
  • growthAssumed0.0%
Graham Number
not applicable
book value / share count missing or non-positive — Graham Number undefined

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001020569-24-000040 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001020569-25-000040 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001020569-26-000013 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001020569-24-000040 (ProfitLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001020569-25-000040 (ProfitLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001020569-26-000013 (ProfitLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001020569-24-000040 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001020569-25-000040 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001020569-26-000013 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001020569-24-000040 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001020569-25-000040 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001020569-26-000013 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001020569-23-000043 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  14. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001020569-24-000040 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  15. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001020569-25-000040 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  16. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001020569-26-000013 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  17. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001020569-23-000043 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  18. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001020569-24-000040 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  19. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001020569-25-000040 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  20. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001020569-26-000013 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)