A higher debt ratio is not always bad
As noted earlier, it’s not always a good idea to compare two companies’ debt ratios and quickly conclude that the higher is “worse” than the other. In some cases, a higher ratio can be better than a lower one when comparing companies in different industries.
For example, a utility or consumer staple company could have a much higher debt ratio than a highly cyclical industrial company. However, the utilities and consumer staples tend to have much less volatile earnings and more reliable cash flows from one year to the next. As such, it makes sense that they can carry a higher relative debt load. On the other hand, a cyclical industrial needs to make sure it has a good debt ratio so it's not overburdened with debt obligations when it goes through an earnings trough.